PULASKI CO. — There is a great need for truck drivers across the nation, but the demand is growing faster than schools can deliver.
Shawnee Community College is trying to help the industry keep up with the need for drivers.
Driving a truck may not be the most glamorous job but it is one in high demand, especially with other industries suffering.
“We see an influx of students every time there is a layoff,” said Wade Ralls, Truck Driving Coordinator with Shawnee Community College.
With coal jobs in decline, Ralls is seeing a lot of those workers joining the truck driving industry.
“In this area, its hard to find a job and it’s hard to find a good job,” said Ralls.
But for the last 15 years the trucking industry has struggled to find enough drivers.
The shortage can be felt throughout the economy because trucks move nearly 70 percent of all freight in the U.S. That means a huge demand for drivers.
“Our graduation rate is right around 98 or 99 percent and we are right around that on the job placement,” said Ralls.
Douglas Harry works for Schneider Transportation and comes to the region to recruit students from Ralls’ program.
He says the industry is currently short more than 100,000 drivers nationwide.
“A lot of the problem is just the stigma. The belief that trucking is the old, dirty industry that it was in the 50s and 60s and its just not anymore,” explained Harry.
Harry says retirements are also cutting into the workforce. Unfortunately, there are not enough classes to train drivers.
According to the American Trucking Association, the industry will need to hire approximately 890,000 new drivers over the next decade to keep up with the demand.
