The US Trucking Company's Recruiting Problem

In our last blog post, we touched on the recruiting challenges facing the American trucking industry. According to some industry experts, this trend is so alarming, and has the potential to create such significant changes in the marketplace, we felt it deserved its own blog. According to the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the industry is about 30,000 drivers short of the number of drivers needed. Most alarming, however, is the prediction that Over the next 10 years, that number is set to rise to 200,000. The industry, which has an average 115-120% annual turnover rate, according to Brian Fielkow, CEO of Jetco Delivery, a logistics company specializing in regional trucking, also has an aging problem. Bob Costello, chief economist at the ATA, says the average age in the for-hire truckload market is about 49, and for less-than-truckload drivers (LTL) and private carriers the average is about 55.

Some attribute the lack of new recruits to the rise of Internet and technology based jobs over the past 20 years. Local employment, with the opportunity to work mostly during business hours, without any physical labor or long trips on the road, can be more appealing to those entering the workplace. Some industry leaders are working to combat this problem. For example, A. Duie Pyle launched an in-house training academy in 2003 to help manage their turn-over rate. The eight-week academy is open to the company’s full-time employees who are interested in getting their commercial driver’s license. The company picks up the entire cost of the program, including meals and lodging, at about $20,000 per student, and has graduated more than 150 drivers.