While data might be open to interpretation, the overall strength of the truck transportation sector continues to increase. Since the pandemic nadir employment levels of April 2020, the monthly employment report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics has been mostly on the up-swing. In fact, “the truck transportation sector reported by the BLS has added jobs for 22 consecutive months.” Read more…
Vice President Kamala Harris announced major federal actions to “expand clean public transit and school buses, reduce emissions from dirty diesel trucks, and create good paying jobs.” With a new proposed rule to set heavy-duty vehicle emission standards, air pollution that often blights “overburdened low-income communities and communities of color” will hopefully be mitigated. The focus on zero emission trucking should also lead to “create good-paying, union jobs, prove public health, and confront climate change.” Read more…
While the picture that autonomous trucks paint in many minds might be of a world where thousands of truck drivers lose their jobs, the reality of the situation might not comport. Though driverless trucks might be an incredible feat, “there are many tasks autonomous trucks will simply not be able to perform for themselves out on the open road.” This will lead to countless new jobs in the industry for applicants across the country. Read more…
The President’s State of the Union address did not overlook the importance of national and global supply chain and logistics, as Joe Biden spoke of “key directives and positions” on the much blighted sector. While once being renowned for having the “best roads, bridges and airports on earth,” Biden suggests that “now our infrastructure is ranked 13th in the world” and that the United States “won’t be able to compete for the jobs of the 21st century if we don’t fix it.” Read more…
In the last half-past decade alone, Memphis has grown the number of jobs in the supply chain and logistics industry “by almost 15%,” putting the city on the map for being an international logistics hub. Compared to the national average for job creation within the industry, which sat under 7% from 2015 to 2020, Memphis has doubled that rate by “nurturing of tech talent within the space,” while also offering “significantly lower operating costs when compared to other logistics markets like New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.” Read more…
The Department of Transportation assessment of the nation’s supply chain issues calls for new policies and utilizing funded resources to help expand truck parking and improve warehouse capabilities. The DOT also reports the “vulnerabilities in the U.S. freight and logistics supply chain and offers clear-cut actions needed to speed up the movement of goods from ships to shelves.” Read more…
With a shortage of 50,000 truck drivers in the American trucking industry, there are plenty of job openings in the sector for ambitious individuals, including jobs where you don’t even have to drive at all. Not only can you choose to work locally or to explore the land beyond the borders, but you can also choose to enter the industry by becoming a dispatcher or instructor. Other unique positions include: heavy equipment hauling, delivery truck driving, and bus driving. Read more…
Despite seeing them everywhere on the news and social media, truck drivers have been exiting the workforce at an unmanageable pace. An aging workforce, high cost of driver training, and high insurance premiums have all led to a mass exodus of the industry, in turn severely impacting the North American supply chain and economy. Solid messaging needs to be increased, such as how rewarding a truck driving career can be with pay much higher than minimum wage and a guaranteed job until retirement. Read more…
The American Trucking Associations – the largest national trade association for the trucking industry – is set to join the 90-Day Trucking Apprenticeship Challenge, an initiative set by the Biden-Harris administration to “launch Registered Apprenticeships as a route toward getting more well-trained drivers on the road in good paying jobs.” The program has also been created to “enhance industry training and safety standards, and support the recruitment and retention of drivers in good trucking jobs.” Read more…
Logistic firms are being forced to create new options for themselves to deal with the shortage of warehouse spaces, including “building multistory facilities and choosing locations farther from coastal ports.” The shortages across the US are coming from many companies stockpiling goods to hedge against supply chain issues, leaving hardly any space for others to stash their merchandise. Robert Thornburgh, the chief executive of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors, says “there is limited inventory of industrial space. It is almost evaporating before your eyes, if you are even lucky enough to know about it.” Read more…
