Frequent InsiderAdvantage articles discuss Georgia’s central role as a logistics hub for the country and how much of a benefit that is for the state’s economy. Nearly 200,000 people are directly employed in logistics industry jobs, with the state handling and hauling almost a trillion dollars worth of cargo every year. With the Port of Savannah now one of the largest in the country, Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, and the luck of geography, much of the logistics industry is locked in as an anchor for the state economy.
However, there is a little wrinkle to this logistics goldmine – truck drivers, or the lack thereof. The American Trucking Association (ATA) released a new report this week saying the industry is short roughly 78,000 drivers. The total is down slightly from last year’s all-time high of 81,000 but it is still a worrying statistic that relies so completely on its workforce. A warehouse that is short workers may be able to cover gaps but a truck without a driver does not move.
“The good news is rising pay and other factors have helped the industry attract new drivers,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “However, that influx is still not enough to make a substantive difference in the shortage – particularly in the long-haul, for-hire truckload sector, the part of the industry most acutely impacted by the shortage.”
The current truck driver workforce skews older and ATA’s report shows that if current demographic trends continue, the shortage could swell to more than 160,000 over the next ten years. Despite some promise of automated driving, the reality is that is a long way a way and the industry must hire more than a million new drivers to keep up based on those leaving through retirement or other reasons.
The shortage is pushing up driver pay – and is another thing making shipping more expensive, which makes products more expensive…causing inflation. Wages were up significantly for drivers last year.
“The data supports what industry sources have been saying for some time – the driver shortage has been great for drivers who saw their salaries rise last year,” said ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “Pay increases were broad based across the industry, for example between salary increases and bonuses, the average truckload driver saw a wage increase of 10.9% last year.”
The higher driver pay is likely to attract new drivers, helping to alleviate the shortage at least somewhat, though pay is not the only factor that seems to be causing the shortage. The median pay for a truck driver last year was $69,000.
“The driver shortage, coupled with increased demand for goods in the post-pandemic economy, really drove driver salaries,” Costello said. “These pay increases should put to lie the myths about the nature of this job – trucking is a path that can provide a well-paid career for Americans looking for one.”
Perhaps interestingly, the driver shortage does not appear to be a phenomena unique to the U.S. According to ATA, Germany, Italy, Argentina, Mexico and China have all reported shortages over the last year. All countries which have high trade with the U.S. China, Mexico and Germany however are ranked first, third and fifth for most trade with the U.S. The increased driver salaries there are likely to be another little piece of the inflation bug worldwide.
