Trucker shortage could affect consumers.
That’s bad news for an industry where driver turnover is growing, and the demand for delivery of goods is rising. It’s also bad news for consumers who are facing longer delays and higher prices for food, clothes and thousands of other products that must be trucked each day.

Consultant Lana Batts said the industry already is 195,000 drivers short of what it needs.

“The market is tighter than it has ever been,” said Scott Arves, president of transportation for Green Bay, Wis.-based Schneider National Inc., one of the nation’s largest trucking firms. “It is a very tough, demanding job: long hours, significant time away from home, increased road congestion, an increase in regulation.”

So far, the only quotes are from a trucking consultant and Schneider (they seem to be in every news article about this shortage, why is that?)

It’s a lot to endure for an industry average of $40,000 a year.

Maybe that’s your first clue as to why there’s a shortage?

The increased costs of recruiting new drivers, plus higher
fuel prices, can add pennies to the cost of a gallon of milk and
dollars to a plasma television set.

It’s also taking longer for goods to get to market, Batts said,
delays that force consumers either to wait or buy something else.

Again, the only quote is from  our trucking industry consultant.  Prices have risen for more reasons than transportation.  When I’m at the mall or anywhere, I’ve never really noticed too many empty shelves for anything.

Government has only exacerbated the shortage, drivers and analysts say.

It’s always the government’s fault.

Hauling fuel and other hazardous substances used to require little
more than a clean driving record and some training. Now, due to
homeland security regulations, drivers who want to transport such
materials have to undergo a background check and fingerprinting.

And new regulations designed to ensure that tired truck drivers
aren’t on the road have forced a lot of them to sit at rest areas
unable to deliver or pick up their loads.

At the same time, federal regulators have rejected industry attempts
to expand the use of triple trailers and lower the minimum age to drive
an 18-wheeler from 21 to 18.

And Congress’ inability to pass a comprehensive highway bill means
the increasing congestion on the nation’s roads will only get worse.

This is where it sounds like a press release rather than a news report. All the things the corporations / industry want to ease this crunch were rejected by the government and making the new HOS to be the bad guy forcing drivers to sit instead of delivering.  Which isn’t the case. The new HOS has forced shippers and carriers to be more efficient and has given us more rest not made us unable to deliver anything. What a crock!

All of which means an industry that isn’t as efficient as it could
be, said Batts, a former senior vice president for the American
Trucking Associations.

“We have too few drivers, driving too few trucks, pulling too few trailers,” she said.

So, now it makes sense. Ms. Batts is not only a trucking consultant, she used to be a VP at ATA, no wonder the rhetoric sounds familier. I’m sure when she says "isn’t as efficient" she means isn’t able to rake in as much profit by running more double and triple trailers and hiring (cheap) kids to drive.

The shortage began to emerge in the early 1990s and has slowly
worsened except for around 2001 when the recession that hurt
construction and manufacturing sectors made trucking jobs relatively
attractive, Arves said.

Which "made trucking jobs attractive"?? How about CHEAP trucking jobs attractive.

It’s not unusual for drivers to leave after only a few grinding weeks on the job.

Trucking companies must spend more to recruit and retain prospective
replacements. Schneider’s Donald Osterberg said the cost of recruiting
an individual driver nearly doubled from 2003 to 2004.

Dart Transit executive Joyce Jordan said that of 1,000 potential
drivers contacted by her company, 100 are legitimate prospects on
average. Of those, 60 apply, 10 are approved, five show up for the
interview, three pass the training tests and one lasts beyond six
months.

New drivers leave because the companies run their rookies  into the ground. This job doesn’t have to be as grinding as some companies make it. If companies invested more time and training into their trainees instead of putting them with a "trainer" that is only interested in making more money or is on some kind of power trip, maybe they would be able to keep the new drivers they are getting. After some decent training, put the newbies on some gravy runs, instead of the crap that no one else wants to take. Ease them into the grind, dedicate a few people to hold their hand a little more at first, instead of throwing them into the deep end and not caring if they float back up or not.

The only people that last longer than six months are the ones that will put up with anything to do what they want to do and to be able to do what they love (me). Or the ones that are so desperate for a job that they will do anything for the semblance of a paycheck. I used to put up with a lot. Crappy trainers. One on a power trip, one that ran hard for the money I was making him. Running non-stop for four weeks only to have to drive home 500 miles empty for a day off. Which started when I left the last load, not when I got home.  I’m not even going to mention pulling a reefer into some of the worst places known to man or beast. Being treated like scum by shippers and your own dispatchers. Now I’m at a better place, but I had to go through the worst and survive to get here, no thanks to anyone in trucking except myself.

That’s why companies such as Schneider have begun to reach out to
less traditional groups to find new drivers. They’ve met with Hispanic
community leaders in Los Angeles, for example, to recruit potential
employees.

This sounds like the article I read recently that I can’t find now, that trucking’s "out of the box" thinking to solve the shortage wasn’t to improve conditions or pay, it was finding new people to exploit. Now it’s the displaced hispanic garment industry worker that trucking is looking for to solve the shortage.

The industry also has tried to improve working conditions for a job
that, because it is not covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act, pays
no overtime or minimum wage.

Just hasn’t tried very hard though.

Pay per mile has risen, training has improved and driving schedules
are more commonly worked around family life so that long-haul drivers
can spend time at home during the weekends.

Thanks to a routine he’s worked out with his bosses at J&E
Trucking, Charles Cunningham, 37, gets to his Okolona, Miss., home most
weekends to spend time with his fiancee, Martha Gladney. Even so, it
can be a bit of a strain.

If that’s what they have to do to keep drivers, that’s what they have to do. There’s a million options to getting drivers home. More companies are coming up with dedicated runs along with more relays and swapping of loads.  Which is better than some of the other "solutions" they’ve come up with so far.

Originally posted 2005-02-25 08:45:28.

Truckers plan to strike

Soaring diesel prices and exorbitant fees are bringing tractor-trailer owner/operators to a boiling point – so much so that some truckers across the nation are planning to strike for 72 hours beginning Monday.

A strike of this magnitude could cripple grocery stores that rely on daily milk, bread and produce deliveries, said Brian McGee, an independent trucker from Port Arthur.

Yeah, but like all the others, it probably won’t happen.

Brian McGee is one long haul driver who will put the brakes on his deliveries. His father Raymond McGee, of Hitchcock, is also a truck driver who plans to stop driving for the 72-hour period.

Raymond McGee has been a trucker for 39 years. In a phone call from Ohio, the elder McGee explained some of the down points to being a professional truck driver. Some of the issues revolved around “lumper’s fees.” When McGee and other drivers deliver their products they have a choice either to unload the truck for a minimal fee or pay a lumper anywhere from $40 to $300 to unload the truck. Truckers feel the lumper’s fee is unreasonable, claiming that the person receiving the delivery should be the one responsible for arranging the unloading of the vehicle.

Even though I don’t deal with lumpers (anymore) they want me to sit for three days and support them? I don’t think so. And what do they expect to accomplish? Who sets the lumper fees? The American public? How about “striking” the companies that make you pay for lumpers. How about not taking a load unless the shipper or someone pays for the lumpers? How about that for a concept?

And the whining continues -

Time is another issue father and son take issue with.

“I have literally sat for 27 hours waiting to be unloaded,” Raymond McGee said. “Then there’s a business in Houston that charges $20 for us just to pull onto their property. There are a lot of problems that no one wants to confront.”

How about charging for detention time? If your stupid enough to be taken advantage of, you’re going to be taken advantage of.

Todd Spensor, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, said he has heard of the possible strike.

“Diesel fuels keep going up and truckers have a tough time offsetting the costs,” Spensor said. “This is a competitive business and it’s getting harder.”

A typical truck driver will use 20,000 to 25,000 gallons of fuel annually. With rising fuel costs that equals to drivers losing up to about $14,000 of their net income in gas prices alone.

Todd’s a good guy and OOIDA isn’t going to approve or sanction something stupid like a strike. Even if we went on strike because of fuel prices, who’s controls the price of oil/fuel? Maybe Opec will take pity on us poor, stupid truckers and lower the prices.

Mike Russell, spokesman for the American Trucking Association, said his organization is not involved with the upcoming strike. Both McGee men had heard rumors that the ATA would endorse the strike.

While there are many company owned truck drivers, it’s the independent drivers that are wanting the strike.

Some of these guys hear this stuff on the CB and think it’s gospel.

Rates are starting to inch up. If Gomer and Son are losing money in this tight truck market, maybe they shouldn’t be driving. A strike isn’t going to prove or solve anything. It’s up to the individual to “strike” cheap freight rates and bad treatment from shippers. They can’t decide why to strike, but it sounds like a good idea to show America we mean business. And then what, Gomer?

Originally posted 2004-11-01 03:45:00.

We happened to get a trip to the Tampa area and decided to drop by the Truckfridge office. After getting directions to the office and a tight turn around the building, the manager comes back, checks the fridge, goes back to the office and gets my original order. Everything was still under the 2 year warranty.

We took the old one out and put in a brand new one. Turned the new one on, made sure it got cold and we were out of there.

Things break and things can happen to any piece of equipment. What makes the difference is the company that stands behind their product. No hassle, no problem. Great place, the fridge we have fits perfectly and works great. It will ice drinks in the fridge part if we have it turned up high. It will keep ice cream in the freezer.

With a fridge and a microwave it’s great to be able to fix meals in the truck and skip the truck stop crap disguised as food. Besides the better taste the cost of fixing our own meals helps immensely  on expenses.

Originally posted 2005-04-20 10:24:41.

Driver shortage creates quandary for trucking.
On the one hand, a lack of drivers is restricting the ability of
trucking companies to expand and meet current freight volumes. Yet that
same lack of drivers results in tight capacity, which is allowing
fleets in many cases to get higher rates from customers and reject
unprofitable business.

“We believe capacity growth in our industry continues to be constrained by a shortage of qualified drivers,” he continued. “Assuming a continuation of the current freight environment, where growth in freight demand has exceeded increases in truckload capacity, we believe there will be opportunities to continue to raise freight rates faster than cost increases. Consequently, we continue to be confident in our ability to move to a 90% operating ratio or better.”

“A solid U.S. economy and a favorable relationship between shipping demand and truckload capacity contributed to a 5.9% increase in our average revenue per loaded mile,” noted Kevin Knight, chairman & CEO of Phoenix-based Knight Transportation.

Bottom line of the article – Rates are going up, salaries are going up. It’s definitely worth a read. Of course they couldn’t leave without mentioning the Driver Shortage -

“The driver recruiting and retention market remains more challenging
than ever,” said Clarence Werner, chairman, president & CEO of
Omaha, NE-based Werner Enterprises. “The supply of qualified truck
drivers continues to be constrained due to alternative jobs to truck
driving that are available in today’s economy. Yet we believe that a
solid freight shipping market … combined with extremely tight truck
capacity is [maintaining] a strong freight market.”

So, they’re saying the dreaded driver shortage is stopping them from making more money, but the driver shortage enables them to make more money. After years of whining about a driver shortage, everyone is beginning to see the light.

I’m now announcing I’m available for consulting positions. Want to know how to raise rates? Solve the Driver Shortage? How about solving your driver retention problems? My email is on the left side. The earliest I could find where I said that on the web, was my first post about the Driver Shortage about my letter to the editor of RoadstarOnline in 2003. I need to stop giving away the solutions for free!

They either don’t realize or maybe they forget that more drivers will drive rates down. Or maybe they’re just greedy bastards that want it all.

Originally posted 2006-02-09 05:00:00.

Anyway, now we are going to a company with 10 trucks, I got my own
plates and IRP registration and insurance through OOIDA, which cut my payment in half since I don’t have to carry frivalous coverage that Graebel forced everyone to carry.  I’ve always
gotten plates and insurance through whatever company I was leased to.
Now I feel that much more independent and a little more in control rather than just a glorified
employee. I think this is a good move for
us.   

The owner gave me a couple of the drivers phone numbers so I could get
some other opinions (which were really good, by the way). I think the
biggest recommendation was from my old dispatcher, who is going to work
for them soon, dispatching and bringing his Vegas customers with him.

I hauled a trip for them once and they remembered me more than I
remembered them. Between my reputation and mostly on my old dispatcher’s
recommendation I get hired over the phone. I read the contract online
and the biggest thing I noticed was that there were no ‘hidden
charges’. A lot of companies will give you a great rate, but start
taking it back in other charges.

We are getting a new trailer with new equipment which will be sweet!
After pulling a piece of junk that leaked (great impression when your
hauling expensive stuff!)  Most of the straps I bought myself because I
couldn’t stand the crap I was issued. The biggest problem I had with
equipment was my own company trying to steal it back!  Any time I
needed equipment, it was like pulling teeth and if I did get something
it was junk. I’ve picked up brand new moving trailers filled with
equipment for the household guys, we were the stepchildren of the
company.

We’re looking forward to starting tomorrow.

Originally posted 2005-03-31 10:28:13.

Charleston.Net: Local News: Trucker in deadly crash didn’t have big rig license 07/16/04

The Mexican truck driver responsible for a deadly truck crash earlier this month on Edisto Island wasn’t licensed to drive tractor-trailers in the United States, leaving local authorities to wonder why he was behind the wheel at all.

He was behind the wheel, because the truck owner is crooked.

Investigators think Silva-Morales was delivering produce from Florida to a store on Edisto Beach when his 18-wheeler veered into oncoming traffic on S.C. Highway 174 and collided with Seamster’s tractor-trailer. Both trucks exploded, killing Seamster. Silva-Morales was injured but has since recovered. The truck Silva-Morales was driving was registered in Ohio, but investigators don’t know if the vehicle belonged to a large trucking company or a small company. The man listed as the owner of the truck driven by Silva-Morales could not be reached for comment.

The truck was registered in Ohio with a Mexican driver running produce from Florida to SC. As much as I’m against the Mexican truck issue, this really has nothing to do with Mexican trucks. It sounds more like an outlaw US owner getting cheap drivers.

Since the owner of the truck was unavailable for comment, (he was busy packing his bags for an extended business trip). The details may be slow coming out.

Park said if Silva-Morales had possessed a Mexican commercial driver’s license, he could have applied for the U.S. equivalent, but he would have had to prove he was in the country legally.

And that’s the question of the day. They should find this owner and string him up. If he’s hiring illegals that didn’t even have a Mexican CDL, they might want to check the truck’s insurance and everything else.

Leon said just because Silva-Morales had no U.S. commercial driver’s license does not necessarily mean he is an unsafe driver.

He’s right, just because someone doesn’t have a license, doesn’t mean they’re unsafe. HAVING A WRECK AND KILLING SOMEONE MAKES HIM UNSAFE And just because he doesn’t have a CDL, doesn’t mean he can’t drive a big truck. This made my head explode. This guy Leon is an idiot plain and simple. Trying to pacify the people that are against the Mexican truck issue, but it backfires and makes him look like an idiot.

Originally posted 2008-08-16 03:30:00.