Truck Driver Shortage – Fact or Fiction?
Part 2

In Part 1 of “Truck Driver Shortage – Fact or Fiction?”, we noted that the conclusions of the 2012 ATC Blue Ribbon Task Force on Tuck Driver Shortage were that a driver shortage is indeed a reality. The report cited several significant reasons as to why the industry isn’t attracting as many new drivers as it is losing. The main reasons came down to compensation and quality-of-life issues. Trucking is a highly competitive industry and in order to be successful a company has to take care of its primary asset – truck drivers. You can have the most up-to-date equipment, technology the envy of NASA, and long-term, stable contracts, but without qualified drivers your company is going to screech to a halt.

Truck Drivers – The Backbone of Transportation

At Rig Logistics, we don’t need a Blue Ribbon Task Force to drive that point home. Because our owner started out as a truck driver himself, the company has a real consciousness when it comes to drivers. We understand what makes our company successful and we do our best to address the issues, large and small, that are important to truck drivers.

It may seem like we are overstating the obvious, but we never lose sight of the fact that truck drivers are human beings deserving of dignity and respect. Furthermore, the job they do is a skilled trade, (regardless of the fact that it is not considered such outside of the industry). If all carriers really took these two issues to heart, many driver retention problems could be solved before they start.

Compensation & Quality of Life for Truckers

Is there an industry-wide driver shortage? No question there is, but at Rig Logistics we have been able to mitigate its effects on our company. By being an attractive place where drivers want to stick around, word gets around. Word spreads, other drivers want to come on board and they want to stick around. No poaching or dishonest tactics are required.

Along with fair pay and benefits, some of the other positive aspects of a driving career with Rig Logistics include:

• Flexibility (full-time & part-time positions)
• Regard for work-life balance
• Ongoing driver education and professional development
• A team environment between & within each department, senior management, & employees
• An open-door policy
• Honest & clear communication
• Extreme safety consciousness & high safety rating
• Low claims ratio
• New equipment, very well maintained & clean
• LCV-PDIC trainer on staff
• High employee retention
• The security of strict inspection protocols
• Mobile maintenance unit
• Maintenance shop on site operational 24/7
• Full service tire agreement & tracking
• National agreement with Pacar & Trailcon for on-road, off-site maintenance

It is the practice of some carriers to promise anything just to get drivers into seats. At Rig Logistics we take a long-term approach to hiring. Revolving door recruiting is not our style. We are honest and upfront. Dishonesty breeds disillusionment which is counterproductive to the long term success of our operation. Because of our recruitment and operational style we have been greatly insulated from the current truck driver shortage. At Rig Logistics the “Sky is NOT Falling” which is good news for our customers and our employees.
Rig Logistics is an asset-based private carrier based out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Please contact us if you are interested in driving for a carrier who is in it for the long haul, or if you are in need of reliable supply-chain solutions.

Truck Driver Shortage – Fact or Fiction?
Part 1

“The Sky is Falling, The Sky is Falling”

There has been much talk of a looming truck driver shortage in the transportation industry for years. Then there was much talk of a driver shorter being right around the corner. Then there was much talk of the driver shortage being upon us. Then there was further talk of a driver shortage crisis of epic proportions being imminent. It reminds one a bit of the children’s story of Chicken Little who is convinced that the world is coming to an end and goes around trying to convince others that “the sky is falling”. So, is the truck driver shortage a reality? Is it “Chicken Little” hyperbole designed to create panic to justify driving up rates? Is it something in between? More importantly, what does it all mean?

CTA Blue Ribbon Task Force

In the spring of 2012, the Canadian Trucking Alliance compiled a report entitled “CTA Blue Ribbon Task Force on the Driver Shortage in Trucking.” The report’s contributors were made up of people involved in the CTA at the board or executive level, most of whom were actively involved in the operation of a transportation company. The task force concluded that indeed, “The trucking industry in Canada is facing a long-term, chronic shortage of qualified drivers. In some regions of the country (e.g., western Canada) and some sectors of the industry (e.g., irregular route long-haul trucking vs. local/regional operations) this is already in evidence.” Furthermore, the report noted that “most Canadian motor carriers…say that looking ahead the shortage of truck drivers is their number one challenge.”

Where are the Truck Drivers?

According to the report, the trucking industry has the oldest workforce in the country. A large pool of drivers is nearing retirement age. And, for a variety of reasons, the transportation industry has not been attracting the number of new workers needed to replace the drivers who are retiring. Further stressing the situation is the fact that trucking is the dominant mode of transportation for moving goods in North America. The demand grows stronger every day as individual consumers are no longer just going to a location to purchase their goods, the stay-at-home and shop-on-the-go-with-hand-held-mobile-devises shopping trends further increase the demand for transportation; thereby impacting the demand for drivers in seats. Never in the history of trucking has it been more important for a carrier to stay on top of recruitment and retention when it comes to qualified drivers.

To learn more about some of the ways we at Rig Logistics are combating the truck driver shortage see the upcoming Part 2 of our blog, “The Truck Driver Shortage – Fact or Fiction?”

Rig Logistics is an asset-based private carrier based out of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Please contact us if you are interested in driving for a carrier who is in it for the long haul, or if you are in need of reliable supply-chain solutions.