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Some insight on the shortage of truck drivers

Surely everyone wants to help Jeff bezos blast off into space right by working for slave wages and allowing him to continue amassing an obscene amount of wealth?

I can only imagine how pissed the average Amazon warehouse employee was at his comments.
Then again, maybe they were too busy trying to not get fired by an algorithm 🙁

With respect to trucking specifically, a guy named Steve Viscelli has done some pretty fascinating research on technology, labor, and trucking and has published a few books on the topic.
 
hal2kilo said:
This is a significant date and location. July 5, 1994, Bellevue, WA
Click to expand...
"Following deregulation of the trucking industry in the late 1970s, during the Jimmy Carter administration, competition among truckers increased and compensation fell as commonly set rates went by the wayside. At the same time, the once legendary clout of truckers' unions (the Teamsters, a name synonymous with union power, was originally a truckers' union) began to disintegrate along with the political influence of unions throughout the country."
money.com

How Trucking Went From One of the Best Jobs in America to One of the Worst

Longer hours, lower pay, less clout
money.com money.com
 
Dave_5k said:
"Following deregulation of the trucking industry in the late 1970s, during the Jimmy Carter administration, competition among truckers increased and compensation fell as commonly set rates went by the wayside. At the same time, the once legendary clout of truckers' unions (the Teamsters, a name synonymous with union power, was originally a truckers' union) began to disintegrate along with the political influence of unions throughout the country."
money.com

How Trucking Went From One of the Best Jobs in America to One of the Worst

Longer hours, lower pay, less clout
money.com money.com
Click to expand...
This is a global thing though. It's certainly prevalent in Europe as well.
 
Well... what i've heard is that truck drivers have moved on to other employment opportunities. And.... also that rules and regulations have recently changed where driver/owners are getting a lot less in pay and basically working an hourly wage rather than pay per delivery job. Maybe someone can explain or verify this better than I can, but the pandemic had a little to do with it but more so the problem stems from a change in how drivers are paid and compensated. Also... I have heard that drivers must pay more expenses out of pocket where as before that was never the case. That's just some of what i've heard.... That for truck drivers and especially owner/operators it just isn't worth it anymore. The pay system has changed as of late and with the compensation turning into an hourly wage.
 
Information here and the data graph are pretty damning. I discourage my own kids from truck driving, but fixing the trucks is still a good gig if you can physically handle it.
 
WelshBloke said:
This is a global thing though. It's certainly prevalent in Europe as well.
Click to expand...
Yup, we often receive up to 15 trucks/day, many of the drivers are from Eastern Europe or other parts of the world. Thing is trucking always involved long hours or even weeks away from home but the pay made it worth it, not so much anymore.
 
sportage said:
Well... what i've heard is that truck drivers have moved on to other employment opportunities. And.... also that rules and regulations have recently changed where driver/owners are getting a lot less in pay and basically working an hourly wage rather than pay per delivery job. Maybe someone can explain or verify this better than I can, but the pandemic had a little to do with it but more so the problem stems from a change in how drivers are paid and compensated. Also... I have heard that drivers must pay more expenses out of pocket where as before that was never the case. That's just some of what i've heard.... That for truck drivers and especially owner/operators it just isn't worth it anymore. The pay system has changed as of late and with the compensation turning into an hourly wage.
Click to expand...
Drivers are paid primarily by miles driven, not "delivery job".
 
Chart is eerily close to exasperation of the wage gap
inequality-pimer-infocus_infocus.png
 
  • Wow
Reactions: pmv
Ajay said:
Okay, this is nuts. I wonder if part of it is that the number of owner/operators has decreased?
Click to expand...

If it wasn't for broken ass emissions equipment added onto the Trucks, sapping them of fuel economy and constantly breaking.....
A person in extended family is a driver, their truck 15 years ago had better MPG and was more reliable than its more modern replacement.
 
Jaskalas said:
If it wasn't for broken ass emissions equipment added onto the Trucks, sapping them of fuel economy and constantly breaking.....
A person in extended family is a driver, their truck 15 years ago had better MPG and was more reliable than its more modern replacement.
Click to expand...
Chart doesn't line up with your theory
 
Jaskalas said:
If it wasn't for broken ass emissions equipment added onto the Trucks, sapping them of fuel economy and constantly breaking.....
A person in extended family is a driver, their truck 15 years ago had better MPG and was more reliable than its more modern replacement.
Click to expand...

C'mon man, anecdotes...
 
The average age of an employed Professional Truck Driver is 47 years old.
Click to expand...
The average Truck driver is White. The age of the average White Truck driver is 51. American Indians,Hispanic\Black\Woman drivers who are smaller part of the Trucking workforce bring the average age down.


Truckers are also more likely to have a disability than other workers. Even looking at just the older workforce, truckers are more likely than other workers age 55 and older to have a disability.
Click to expand...

Prior to the epidemic, you had a workforce of primarily uneducated, old white men with disabilities making mediocre salaries during a period in their lives when health care costs are rising due to age related fun and games.


america-keeps-on-trucking-figure-4.jpg





....but why listen to me or some fucker on Twitter when you can look at American trucking Associations actual analysis
 
I’m curious, why don’t they have military/National Guard temporarily drive trucks until they can recruit more drivers? Since the supply chain is that important, wouldn’t/shouldn’t that be an option?
 
soundforbjt said:
I’m curious, why don’t they have military/National Guard temporarily drive trucks until they can recruit more drivers? Since the supply chain is that important, wouldn’t/shouldn’t that be an option?
Click to expand...
I've been wondering the same thing since the UK announced that solution. With the armed forces now out of Afghanistan, there must be some more people back in the states with the abilities to drive trucks. Also, what about a 6 month pause on the laws that regulate the amount of time truck drivers can drive?

www.npr.org

The British Government Prepares To Use Army Truck Drivers To Help With Gas Crisis

Motorists roam greater London in search of open gas stations. The government insists the U.K. is not facing a fuel shortage, just a shortage of drivers who can deliver it to the pump.
www.npr.org www.npr.org
 
pauldun170 said:
The average Truck driver is White. The age of the average White Truck driver is 51. American Indians,Hispanic\Black\Woman drivers who are smaller part of the Trucking workforce bring the average age down.




Prior to the epidemic, you had a workforce of primarily uneducated, old white men with disabilities making mediocre salaries during a period in their lives when health care costs are rising due to age related fun and games.


america-keeps-on-trucking-figure-4.jpg





....but why listen to me or some fucker on Twitter when you can look at American trucking Associations actual analysis
Click to expand...
Well some 'fucker' on Twitter lead me to post this thread, where some good info has been shared - such as the PDF you have kindly linked us too. I posted this hoping others would help shed light on this - thank you.

PS That 'fucker' is Paul Krugman - one of America's top economists and a Nobel Laureate - so not too shabby for twitter.
 
dullard said:
Also, what about a 6 month pause on the laws that regulate the amount of time truck drivers can drive?
Click to expand...
Bad idea - that was put in place because companies were pushing drivers to spend more time on the road and not getting adequate rest and sleep; resulting in more accidents caused by truckers at the same time as being harmful to their general health and wellness.
 
Ajay said:
Well some 'fucker' on Twitter lead me to post this thread, where some good info has been shared - such as the PDF you have kindly linked us too. I posted this hoping others would help shed light on this - thank you.

PS That 'fucker' is Paul Krugman - one of America's top economists and a Nobel Laureate - so not too shabby for twitter.
Click to expand...

I am anti social media and refer to all all twats on twitters as fuckers.
Meanwhile you are here claiming that Krugman is not a fucker.
I'm calling him a twat who is a fucker.
Neither of us know him personally so our assumptions on his fukleristic qualities cancel each other out.

You can be a Nobel Laureate and be a fucker.
Those are the indisputable facts.
- Robert Kennedy
 
pauldun170 said:
The average Truck driver is White. The age of the average White Truck driver is 51. American Indians,Hispanic\Black\Woman drivers who are smaller part of the Trucking workforce bring the average age down.




Prior to the epidemic, you had a workforce of primarily uneducated, old white men with disabilities making mediocre salaries during a period in their lives when health care costs are rising due to age related fun and games.


america-keeps-on-trucking-figure-4.jpg





....but why listen to me or some fucker on Twitter when you can look at American trucking Associations actual analysis
Click to expand...

Not surprising at all. I spent a good deal of my 20's and 30's driving and sitting and ended up with some shitty problems. It really messes with us humans.
 
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