Record Job Losses in Trucking Sector
In April, about 88,300 truck drivers were laid off, marking the largest monthly decline in trucking jobs on record, based on data from January 1990.
This significant drop eliminated all job gains in the trucking industry from the past five and a half years, reverting employment levels to those seen in November 2014.
The broader job market also faced severe challenges, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on May 8. A staggering 20.5 million jobs were lost nationwide in April, a figure 25 times greater than the most substantial decline during the late 2000s recession.
The unemployment rate across the nation has now surged to 14.7%, the highest it has been since the Great Depression.
Despite truck drivers being classified as “essential” during the coronavirus pandemic, freight volumes and rates have plummeted this year. The halt in manufacturing and other sectors has heavily impacted the movement of goods, as trucks transport nearly three-quarters of all freight by weight in the United States. With consumer purchases down, many truck drivers find themselves without work.
A report from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, sourced by Politico, warns that the trucking industry is nearing a “freight cliff.” Cass Information Systems noted that the volume of goods transported by truck has sunk to its lowest levels since 2009.
Continuing Challenges from 2019
The trucking industry was already facing challenges before the pandemic, with 2019 being particularly tough. Drivers, like Chad Boblett from Lexington, Kentucky, described the situation as a “bloodbath.” In the first half of 2019, around 640 trucking companies filed for bankruptcy, significantly higher than the 175 bankruptcies reported in the same timeframe the previous year.
The downturn in trucking jobs in 2019 was exacerbated by a slowdown in manufacturing, which the Institute of Supply Management reported had contracted for several months, hitting its lowest index level since June 2009 in October.
However, the conditions in 2020 have proven to be even worse than the dire months of 2019. While trucking companies let go of about 5,100 workers in August of 2019, the April job losses represent 16 times that figure.
If you are involved in the trucking industry, feel free to reach out at rpremack@businessinsider.com.
