Driver Shortage
- Thread starter jock
- Start date
“There is no shortage of drivers. However, there is a shortage of safe, reliable drivers with stable employment histories,†Mitch Bookbinder, manager of retention and recruiting for L.J. Kennedy Trucking, tells FLEET OWNER. “Trucking companies are focused on attracting and retaining these top-caliber drivers, without exception. Yet while pay rates and benefits have improved markedly in the past two years, it will take more time before these advances in compensation draw considerable numbers of new drivers into the trucking industry.â€
“The driver shortage that has plagued the truckload industry for close to two decades is not going to be solved in a short time frame,†says Kirk Thompson, president & CEO of Lowell, AR-based J.B. Hunt Transportation Services
“The driver shortage that has plagued the truckload industry for close to two decades is not going to be solved in a short time frame,†says Kirk Thompson, president & CEO of Lowell, AR-based J.B. Hunt Transportation Services
Kinda what Terry said. There is no shortage of what I define as "truck Aimers" The ones that slam the freight on, turn the XM up, drive till they get hungry, or, tired. There is however, a shortage of freight securing, customer oriented, profit minded, care for equipment, strive to excell, curtious, professional attitude, "Truck Drivers". Look in the Driver Available section. The requirements seem to be home every week-end, holidays, all their Great Aunts birthdays, No NYC, No New England, No West Coast, No nuthin. Just my spin.
I think a big reason there is a driver shortage, especially in expediting is because of the border crossing issue. Some good drivers can't go to Canada. Most of the big companies tell you there is no forced dispatch. If you have a problem crossing the border, forget about it, which is a bunch of B.S. Most drivers I know don't want to go in and out of Canada anyway because of the long lines at customs, toll and other issues.
Gregp suggested that there is a driver shortage in expediting. I would suggest just the opposite; there is no driver shortage, but there is a shortage of people who want to enter the business of expediting, either as an owner/operator or just an owner of one or more vehicles.
Not many days go by where I'm not approached by someone who wants to get into the big bucks and drive an expediter truck, particularly a van. They seem to think that expediting is an easy way to make easy money and, like the Colonel sez, they don't want to work very much and be home every weekend, etc.
I also find it curious that someone would want to join a company that says, up front, that they service customers in Canada and New York City, but then consistently balks when offered such loads. The no-forced-dispatch policies practiced by most carriers leasing Independant Contractors are, I suspect, intended to provide an O/O the indedendence to refuse a load on a case-by-case basis. An O/O surely can't expect a carrier to remain silent when all Canada or NYC loads are always refused.
Not many days go by where I'm not approached by someone who wants to get into the big bucks and drive an expediter truck, particularly a van. They seem to think that expediting is an easy way to make easy money and, like the Colonel sez, they don't want to work very much and be home every weekend, etc.
I also find it curious that someone would want to join a company that says, up front, that they service customers in Canada and New York City, but then consistently balks when offered such loads. The no-forced-dispatch policies practiced by most carriers leasing Independant Contractors are, I suspect, intended to provide an O/O the indedendence to refuse a load on a case-by-case basis. An O/O surely can't expect a carrier to remain silent when all Canada or NYC loads are always refused.
We have been hiring drivers for the last month or so and it is a changing business. Only two out of ten are bonafide candidates. Many without prior or little experience have expectations of a new large sleeper truck, automatic with generator that they can get home every weekend at the owners expense. Additionally, many of these people only have permits and not a full license.
And as mentioned, then the list of demands of where they aren't going. No west coast, no Canada, no northeast. Where do they think they are going to run?
Even had one a week ago that said no Texas. Too hot.
Some of them you really have to laugh about.
I advise most to seek a cab license when they give me the above lists of demands.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
And as mentioned, then the list of demands of where they aren't going. No west coast, no Canada, no northeast. Where do they think they are going to run?
Even had one a week ago that said no Texas. Too hot.
Some of them you really have to laugh about.
I advise most to seek a cab license when they give me the above lists of demands.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
You be lucky, if you're finding two out of ten. But then, they open their mouth and you're back to ground zero I suppose. I don't know if you meant changing business or challenging, but, it's way too much of a challenge for me. I quit look'in. They'll just have to go work at the Post Office. Like you, I wonder where they do want to run. Had one bring a load back from Texas afer he missed his appointment on Friday and wasn't going to stay because it was too hot. Wonder if'n it's the same one. I could go on and on, but, suffice to say, I did in fact quit look'in.
There's an over abundance of steering wheel holders. There's a shortage of transportation specialists with an emphasis on professional driving. It's not a problem to find someone to turn the key and turn the wheel. It's a problem to find someone to professionally represent the carrier while properly maintaining the equipment, correctly completing all paperwork and logs, courteously dealing with shippers and consignees and otherwise doing the job in a professional manner.
Leo Bricker, 73's K5LDB, OOIDA 677319
Owner, Panther trucks 5507, 5508, 5509
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator
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Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.
Leo Bricker, 73's K5LDB, OOIDA 677319
Owner, Panther trucks 5507, 5508, 5509
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator
----------
Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.
There will never be shortage of drivers in this country.
Ever.
The next wave of uneducated, unskilled, etc., etc., will be the Mexican drivers, who are willing to work harder and cheaper than us American citizens, for whatever economic or social reasons.
Unfortunately, they will also keep the prevailing wages stagnant for many years to come.
That is why you hardly ever see an Asian driver. They would rather sacrifice the cheap wage (short-term) and invest their time in higher education.
Be safe and acquire a skill that others do not possess.
Ever.
The next wave of uneducated, unskilled, etc., etc., will be the Mexican drivers, who are willing to work harder and cheaper than us American citizens, for whatever economic or social reasons.
Unfortunately, they will also keep the prevailing wages stagnant for many years to come.
That is why you hardly ever see an Asian driver. They would rather sacrifice the cheap wage (short-term) and invest their time in higher education.
Be safe and acquire a skill that others do not possess.
The next wave of uneducated, unskilled, etc., etc., will be the Mexican drivers, who are willing to work harder and cheaper than us American citizens, for whatever economic or social reasons.
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That is closer than you think. And, they love to go to TX. It still amazed me that someone had that demand(not going to TX) and wasn't even driving for me yet. The sad part is, after I told him I wasn't interested, he said two other owners agreed to it. I am assuming desperate ones.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
==============================================
That is closer than you think. And, they love to go to TX. It still amazed me that someone had that demand(not going to TX) and wasn't even driving for me yet. The sad part is, after I told him I wasn't interested, he said two other owners agreed to it. I am assuming desperate ones.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
arkjarhead
Veteran Expediter
I have a question. Why can't someone be a professional truck driver and go home on weekends? I don't but my brother does. He drives for a very well known flatbed company. He's been there 6 years been driving for 10. No accidents no tickets no nothing. He's a real pro. He goes home every weekend because the company gets him there to see his wife and kids. Not because he is a "steering wheel holder". If I was a gambling man I would bet he is a more professional driver than 95% of the people who will read this. I know I look up to him. And when I get a little more experience I will be with the same company he's with. It is very unfair to say someone is not good at there job because they value time with they're family. Not everyone in trucking or expedite has retired from a white collar job and have they're wife with me and ride in a r.v. This is what pays my bills and sends my wife to college. I don't stay gone for 2 months at a time because I drive to live not live to drive. It is easy for a man who has his wife in the truck with him say you shouldn't go home.
I think that someone that drives professionally can be home every weekend. But, not in expediting. They are two different animals.
It would be safe to assume that people are talking about expediting specifically, rather than all sectors of trucking.
If you came into expediting with the thought of being home every weekend, you will likely fail.
Again, it doesn't mean you are not a good driver, but you would typically be unsuited for expediting.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
It would be safe to assume that people are talking about expediting specifically, rather than all sectors of trucking.
If you came into expediting with the thought of being home every weekend, you will likely fail.
Again, it doesn't mean you are not a good driver, but you would typically be unsuited for expediting.
Davekc
owner
21 years
PantherII
EO moderator
Arkjarhead:
we don't suggest that only the professional driver stays away from home for extended periods. A company driver or an O/O with a dedicated run is the most likely type of driver that can get home on a regular schedule.
The nature of an expedited freight carrier is not conducive to return to your home town on a regular schedule. Rather than go from point A to point B and return to point A, a successful expediter will get a job from point A thence to B and C and D and point E, etc. Going home every weekend will involve a lot of deadhead that will soon make this segment of trucking non-profitable.
we don't suggest that only the professional driver stays away from home for extended periods. A company driver or an O/O with a dedicated run is the most likely type of driver that can get home on a regular schedule.
The nature of an expedited freight carrier is not conducive to return to your home town on a regular schedule. Rather than go from point A to point B and return to point A, a successful expediter will get a job from point A thence to B and C and D and point E, etc. Going home every weekend will involve a lot of deadhead that will soon make this segment of trucking non-profitable.
Very well said,but Expediting is a different ball game. Expediters and Expediting Companies do not have for the most part dedicated trips that allow for scheduled time home.
Expediting involves emergency freight shipments,someone once said we are the ambulance of the freight industry. Everyone here will tell you about phone calls that come in at 11PM or Saturday afternoons for freight that must go NOW. The lifestyle of an expediter is totally different from a 5 day driver that goes 300 miles a day. Expedite pay is generally higher then the usual driver pay as it is not easy to attract and keep drivers willing to put up with the demands of this lifestyle. But the prima donnas out here want the proverbial cake and eat it too.
Expediting involves emergency freight shipments,someone once said we are the ambulance of the freight industry. Everyone here will tell you about phone calls that come in at 11PM or Saturday afternoons for freight that must go NOW. The lifestyle of an expediter is totally different from a 5 day driver that goes 300 miles a day. Expedite pay is generally higher then the usual driver pay as it is not easy to attract and keep drivers willing to put up with the demands of this lifestyle. But the prima donnas out here want the proverbial cake and eat it too.
arkjarhead
Veteran Expediter
Like I said I'm in expedite and I'm not home every weekend. There is no way I could be home every weekend. One reason is because I'm not always close enough to go home, and since i'm a solo I get my "good" runs on the weekends. There have been a few times where I left on monday and it just so happened by chance I unloaded friday within 50 miles of home so I went home. But that is the exception not the rule. I came to expedite from general trucking and I like expedite but sometimes I feel expediters like to bash on truckers in the otr truckload segment.Both expedite and non expedite trucking have their pros and cons. Sometimes I miss the other side of trucking because sometimes it is nice to know what your next 2 loads are, but I enjoy how expediting is a little more spontaneous. Plus I feel expediting loads are more challenging with an appointment time of 3:15 instead of sometime tomorrow morning which means from 7 am until noon. But if i'm feeling sick it might be nice to have a wide open window. Expedite is totally different. The thing about drivers saying what they will and won't do when they first start driving is crazy. It sounds like they want to start at the top. The larger non expedite companies are coming up with some pretty sweet packages to attract experienced drivers, not students.
arkjarhead
Veteran Expediter
Rich,
The primadonnas won't be happy if they can have everything their lil hearts desire they will still find a problem.
The primadonnas won't be happy if they can have everything their lil hearts desire they will still find a problem.
mrgoodtude
Not a Member
So many good and "valid" points in this post...Cynthia and I are still newbies (11-04) and I still wake up and say to myself why do I do this? It certainly is not the money, not that it's not good sometimes but other times it really stinks.... In this business I believe a majority of successfull steering wheel holders Take pride in what they do, we serve a niche in the industry and most of the time are welcome with open arms by a diffrent class of people. We are treated diffrent and coming from a truckload enviroment I embrace that. Important to us is the time we spend together, I enjoy the look on Cynthia's face when she finally gets to see somthing I have told her about in my travels from the beauty of Oregan to the bright lights of NY we have seen so much together. I know however that if she left me tommorrow I would probably go back to truckload for the money and she would probably go back to the office. I admire the singles out there in this business in that you really have to have discipline and be business savy to make this work and justify the sacrifice with family. I often wondered why fleet owners have not advertised for professional teams on truckload websites like Bubba Junk or Trucking Jobs.com not that expedite is necessarily more lucrative but I am sure there are teams out there that would prefer to enjoy their travels a little more, It took me a year (yes I am slow) to figure out an "in" to the expedite world and had it not been for this site and the effort of Lawrence and all the experienced expediters I have had the privledge of speaking too I would still be clueless...Just a thought
Mike and Cyn
Mike and Cyn
raceman
Veteran Expediter
Now I think I can add something. As the talk seems to bash drivers, it is not. Many of the folks who sound as though they are bashing are truck owners. Fleet owners. I was in that position for a while and all that they say is very true. In the position of owner you can not have that truck sit or deadhead. When you are talking topeople who say they want to do this but then turn around and tell you all they will not do while doing it but want top pay for it, well you tend to bash these people.
As a driver when I first went out I did it with TS and I left in November managed to make it home for Christmas day then back out until end of January. No weekends home just flat out running. I always tell people I made more money in that period than I had ever made in my life. As a fleet owner I only had one driver that could make enough money so that the truck had its bills paid for, the driver got paid and I made a dollar or two. The other six or seven I had actually cost me money because they would not run, would not take care of the truck and needed advances all the time. That is why we sound as though we are bashing.
In OTR companies are carrying freight that delivers for the most part Monday through Friday. That is not the case in Expediting. Someone even mentioned above, the best runs are over the weekend. In most cases if you live in the freight zones it is very possible to get by the home here and there. Maybe it is not the weekend but it can be done.
The simple fact is people do not know how to operate in this business and that is why I am a driver and no longer a fleet owner.
As far as bashing goes turn on the CB. The big trucks bash us on a minute by minute basis. I have been in a big truck and I respect many of those folks but I also have a lack of respect for many of them.
I think when you talk to fleet owners, big truck company recruiters and successfull O/O and they all say the same thing about the quality of availible drivers, well it is always the same very consistant story. I think that shows there is a quality issue.
Raceman
OTR O/O
As a driver when I first went out I did it with TS and I left in November managed to make it home for Christmas day then back out until end of January. No weekends home just flat out running. I always tell people I made more money in that period than I had ever made in my life. As a fleet owner I only had one driver that could make enough money so that the truck had its bills paid for, the driver got paid and I made a dollar or two. The other six or seven I had actually cost me money because they would not run, would not take care of the truck and needed advances all the time. That is why we sound as though we are bashing.
In OTR companies are carrying freight that delivers for the most part Monday through Friday. That is not the case in Expediting. Someone even mentioned above, the best runs are over the weekend. In most cases if you live in the freight zones it is very possible to get by the home here and there. Maybe it is not the weekend but it can be done.
The simple fact is people do not know how to operate in this business and that is why I am a driver and no longer a fleet owner.
As far as bashing goes turn on the CB. The big trucks bash us on a minute by minute basis. I have been in a big truck and I respect many of those folks but I also have a lack of respect for many of them.
I think when you talk to fleet owners, big truck company recruiters and successfull O/O and they all say the same thing about the quality of availible drivers, well it is always the same very consistant story. I think that shows there is a quality issue.
Raceman
OTR O/O
dhalltoyo
Veteran Expediter
Wow! I guess I am really blessed to live at the junction of two major East/West and North/South freight lanes because I get home 3 out of 4 weekends.
I will run Canada and the East Coast, or any destination for that matter as long as the "Cost-Per-Return" factor makes the run worthwhile. Running from St Louis into Del Rio, TX without any hope of a return run makes little sense. The initial profit may look good, but coming back empty to St Louis makes it a loser. Considering fuel and operating costs one must consider the "Cost-Per-Return". I have a good work ethic, but I am not going to lose money trying to prove that I am a regular guy.
I deliver "On-Time" and I consdier myself a professional. I treat the customer with respect and I am a courteous driver.
I will run Canada and the East Coast, or any destination for that matter as long as the "Cost-Per-Return" factor makes the run worthwhile. Running from St Louis into Del Rio, TX without any hope of a return run makes little sense. The initial profit may look good, but coming back empty to St Louis makes it a loser. Considering fuel and operating costs one must consider the "Cost-Per-Return". I have a good work ethic, but I am not going to lose money trying to prove that I am a regular guy.
I deliver "On-Time" and I consdier myself a professional. I treat the customer with respect and I am a courteous driver.