An article from braintrack.com, called “Truck Drivers Are In Demand” talks about the latest phenomenon in this weak economy. It’s about the high demand of good drivers all over the country. Fernando Huizar was quoted as saying: “I heard that trucking is one of the biggest jobs hiring in the country. You know how the economy is,” he said. “There are no jobs and it’s all minimum wage. I see this like a career. I’m thinking of staying in it as long as I can.” Fernando was interested in truck driving due to “ready opportunities available.”
U.S. Xpress Enterprises president and co-chairman, Patrick Quinn, was also interviewed. He was quoted as saying: “There’s an aging driver population. There’s a shortage of qualified drivers coming, because of changing government regulations and the estimates from the American Trucking Association are that we will need up to 400,000 drivers in the next four years. These are good jobs; they’re good paying jobs, they’re jobs that will not go to China or India or other countries. . . . They’re long-term career opportunities.”
Michael Darling, Vice President of Operations for Western Truck School as well as the national commercial Vehicles Trainers Association, was quoted in the article. “Carriers nationally are running scared to meet the demand.”
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the trucking industry will need to be hired by 2018 to meet the high need.
Mr. Quinn believes that there will be quite a few more new hires than experienced drivers for the next few years due to the aging population, but also due to the new CSA2010 safety regulations. This will raise the wages of good drivers, but it’s not a good fit for everyone. It’s hard work and long hours.
http://www.braintrack.com/college-and-work-news/articles/truck-drivers-are-in-demand-10110202


