While there’s a lot to be said about the global pandemic driving truckers out of the industry, there are also cases of the pandemic bringing new personnel into the sector as well. For instance, former nurse Leah Gorham says that COVID-19 made conditions “unbearable, unsafe and caused low morale amongst staff.” She wanted to find a career where she had job satisfaction, general happiness and safety, and was soon able to find these qualities by following in her boyfriend’s footsteps and becoming a truck driver. Read more…
MARIJUANA TESTING LEADING TO TRUCKER SHORTAGE
A top Wells Fargo analyst believes that there’s more to blame than just the COVID-19 pandemic for rising costs and driver shortages in the transportation industry — “federal marijuana criminalization and resulting drug testing mandates” are a part of the issue as well. While marijuana is legalized in some states, it remains illegal in others, henceforth mandating federal drug testing for all truckers. Read more…
DOL INITIATIVE AFFECTS LOGISTICS INDUSTRY
The U.S. Department of Labor’s latest initiative of the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division is meant “to focus on protecting the wages and workplace rights of the workers” in the warehouse and logistic industries as the global supply chain demand continues to impact them greatly. The initiative will focus on minimums and overtimes, workplace harassment, family and medical leave, and independent contractor analysis. Read more…
HOW TO SOLVE TRUCKER SHORTAGE
The lack of truck drivers is one of the biggest issues blighting the country’s supply chain. Poor work conditions and low pay are driving life-long truckers to look elsewhere for jobs, but experts believe that new incentives like “bonuses, weekends at home, and even free CDL training” may be the answer to lure potential new applicants. Read more…
THE MANY BENEFITS OF THE TRUCK DRIVING INDUSTRY
Despite the truck driving industry losing 6% of workers since the global pandemic began, there are many drivers who are still touting the fantastic benefits of the career. For example, line-haul trucker Richard Frazer “savors the views from him his workplace window,” especially the “sunsets, the sunrise and the landscape.” There are not many other careers that afford the freedom of seeing this country and its beauty day in and day out. Read more…
LOGISTICS TECH STARTUP VEHO VALUED AT 1.5 BILLION
Veho, a logistics startup that uses technology to help with next-day package delivery, has raised “$170 million in an early-stage funding round led by Tiger Global that valued it at $1.5 billion.” This news comes only six weeks after the company raised “$125 million at a valuation of $1 billion.” The funds will go towards creating more automated warehouses across the nation and quadrupling its headcount to 2,000. Read more…
TRUCK COMPANIES STRUGGLE TO MEET EMISSIONS DEMAND
With truck companies struggling to meet CA emissions demand, many are worrying that not only will the supply chain issues get worse, but drivers could lose their jobs. These companies need to have engine models of 2010 or newer by 2023, but it’s becoming harder to afford newer models due to the ongoing semi-conductor shortage. According to the Western States Trucking Association, “40,000 vehicles in the state are older than 2010 models. If those don’t get upgraded, they won’t be allowed on the road.” Read more…
TRUCK DRIVERS FRUSTRATED BY MORE THAN JUST COVID
Long before the COVID-19 pandemic, United States truck drivers had already been blighted with problems such as “bad pay for long hours and weeks away from home,” but these issues hadn’t been thrust into the spotlight until the nation started reeling from supply chain issues. With tough working conditions, it is extremely difficult to retain drivers, as “the average annualized turnover rate of long-haul drivers at larger companies was 96% during the third quarter of last year,” according to the American Trucking Associations. Read more…
MACHINES MAY TAKE OVER LOGISTICS BY 2025
Logistic experts are prognosticating that “machines will take over 50% of workplace tasks by 2025,” according to a report released by DHL last week. Multitudinous changes, “from shifting demographics, technology advancement, to the COVID-19 pandemic,” are all leading to a massive change to the “long established status quo at a pace and scale never seen before in the logistics industry.” Read more…
FEMALE TRUCKERS GET CREATIVE FOR BATHROOM BREAKS
With shippers and receivers often not allowing truckers to use their facility bathrooms, female drivers, who make up 10% of truckers, are finding creative ways to battle this significant inconvenience. There are accounts of women drivers using buckets filled with kitty litter and bringing their own porta-potties. Read more..