The idea of a national trucker shortage has gained popularity as one reason for the widespread supply chain issues that have crippled the economy over the past year. But some experts say there isn’t actually a driver shortage at all — and that suggesting so ignores the bigger issues within the industry.
Congestion at ports in California continues to cause supply chain delays with ships idling offshore, waiting to unload their cargo, and containers lingering too long at the docks, waiting to be transported by truck or rail. The delays have been blamed on a number of shortages, including equipment like chassies, shipping containers and truck drivers.
Calls for new drivers continue, citing a report from the American Trucking Associations, which said the shortage will hit a historic high of 80,000 drivers this year.
Oct. 25, 202102:15
“We don’t have a truck driver shortage at the ports,” said Steve Viscelli, an economic sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania. “The problem is that these truckers’ time is used so inefficiently. The cranes, the longshoreman labor, all that gets priced and used efficiently.”
In the port ecosystem, truck drivers are paid by the load and not the hour, making them some of the most vulnerable workers, according to Viscelli. Other port workers receive overtime pay and belong to unions, but truckers are classified as independent contractors. As such, they aren’t considered employees and...
A Senate Democrat has proposed a bill to repeal the federal Education Freedom Tax Credit, which passed in President Donald Trump’s budget bill last year. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Arizona, made numerous ...