Trucker Labor Shortage

by Jacyn Dawes, Graduate Assistant with the Gwartney Institute



Trucks have fascinated kids for many years.  Their size, noise, and colors probably play an important role.  The creation of Transformers in the 1980s, with Optimus Prime as the leader, only enhanced the fun.  Optimus Prime brought a cool new spin on a Class 8 truck, which might have inspired some kids to grow up and be truck drivers themselves.  Truck driving was a skyrocketing profession during the 1900s.


Unfortunately, in recent years the bulk of those drivers are reaching retirement age with few to fill their shoes.  The average age of a truck driver is currently 49, putting this industry seven years above the average worker in the U.S.  Aside from the strain truck driving can cause mentally and physically, there are a few recent factors that are affecting the truck driver work pool, including regulations and money.

The trucking industry remains one of the most heavily regulated industries in the world.  In the United States, the government has added a mandate recently that has to do with the electronic logging device, also known as an ELD.  This mandate moves from an open platform of hour of service recording, such as paper, to a strictly electronic form.  This keeps companies more accountable for the hours that their drivers are working to minimize the fatigue and stress while on the road.  The ELD mandate does come with difficult restrictions that drivers must meet or be forced to turn off their trucks.

Along with the recently added ELD mandate, 2019 has been a particularly rough year for the trucking industry and many experts are concluding that the industry is currently in a recession.  The rates that trucking companies are paid to haul freight have dropped significantly, but costs have not.  This market is making it hard for trucking companies to pay drivers fair wages.

HVH Transportation was one of many examples of this when they shut down their business including fuel cards, leaving 324 truck drivers stranded.  This has caused many to look more into the possibility of autonomous trucks, but the fact remains that this industry is far from making it without drivers in the trucks.  Freight like liquid in totes or hazardous materials require special endorsements and certifications, paperwork that needs to be completed and check at locations, and the inevitable truck breakdowns are just a few examples of this.

This new mandate combined with the decreasing prices, stable costs, and ever-changing labor demographic all play a role in the truck driver shortage.  In years to come, it will be interesting to see if the trucking industry can make the jobs seem more attractive to a younger labor force.  There is a chance that autonomous trucks will be able to make the job of a truck driver easier, giving them time to look for their next haul and keeping their fatigue low.  After the difficulty Optimus Prime faced on his home planet Cybertron, he might agree that while autonomous driving is a possibility in the near future, there will still be a need for human presence. 

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