Trucking industry not finding enough drivers

DAYTON, Ohio – An aging workforce, tougher regulations and waning interest among younger workers are causing a nationwide shortage of truck drivers.

Despite a need for hundreds of thousands of drivers, trucking companies say they are having a tough time attracting applicants.

The need for more drivers is expected to become more significant in the near future, with freight revenues expected to rise as much as 70 percent over the next decade and a current shortage of about 35,000 drivers, according to a 2015 report by HireRight, a national employment services firm.

“It’s not any one part of the industry, it’s the whole trucking industry,” said Tom Hicswa, commercial driver’s license director for Clark State Community College. “It’s a huge problem because if we don’t get people to drive and if the motorcarriers don’t figure out a way to attract people, you’re looking at grocery store shelves and a lot of places will be empty because nobody will be able to deliver it.”

Despite entry-level jobs in the area that can pay from $35,000 to $40,000, attracting students to the industry is difficult, Hicswa said.

“Enrollment has been small,” he said. “We run classes from about nine to 12 people.”

Information from a report last month from the American Trucking Associations showed the rate of drivers leaving the industry or changing companies was higher than 90 percent in 2014 for both large and small companies. The ATA uses the turnover rates as one barometer of the driver shortage.

A HireRight report showed the most common reasons for drivers to leave the industry included a desire for higher pay, better benefits and to spend more time at home.

“Life on the road is an extremely physically demanding occupation,” the report said. “The average life expectancy of a trucker is less than that of the general public. As the workforce continues to age, regulatory agencies will continue to scrutinize the health of drivers.”