EICCD - truck - Quad City Times -- December 25, 2005

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Driving Needs

Industry Turns to Training to Stem Hauler Loss

By Wayne Ma

Rick Edwards spent the majority of his career as a field engineer for wireless companies like Motorola and Nextel.

But when he moved back to Iowa in July, he discovered that he was tired of the constant politics and stress of his work.

Edwards, who turns 40 this month, is now enrolled in the Scott Community College truck-driving program.

“Since I was a little boy, I’ve always wanted to drive trucks,” he said.

The trucking industry is facing a shortage of about 20,000 drivers, according to Tiffany Wlazlowsky, public affairs director for the American Trucking Association. The Alexandria, Va.-based motor-carrier lobbyist conducted its own survey in May, and expects that number to rise to 111,000 by 2014.

Several factors, Wlazlowsky said, are contributing to the shortage. The primary demographic, which continues to be white males age 35-54, is shrinking. At the same time, a significant number of drivers are about to retire. Freight, meanwhile, is increasing, she said.

“Capacity is tight,” she said. “Many companies can’t add to their fleets, because they don’t have drivers to feed the tractors.”

The 10-week Scott truck-driving program — which prepares students for the Commercial Driver’s License exam — includes 32 hours of behind-the-wheel training and 64 hours of classroom instruction. Dick Walker, assistant head instructor, said the program is one of the lengthier ones in the country and is offered six times a year.

Many of the students, he said, are enrolled because they want to better themselves. Some have been laid off from other jobs and some are retired. The ages of students range from 18 to 64.

“There are also some people who have just always wanted to do it,” he added.

The behind-the wheel portion teaches students how to operate trucks in different speeds, and also teaches defensive driving, safety and transport of hazardous materials.

In addition, students drive through downtown Davenport and learn how to navigate around the truck-eating bridge on Harrison Street. Walker said although students are not told about the bridge, most of them notice the warning lights that go off.

“It’s an eye-opening experience,” he said.

Walker, who drove trucks for 33 years, said SCC also is the only program in the Quad-Cities with a truck-driving simulator. The simulator, he said, was purchased two years ago and can simulate weather conditions, blown-out tires and other scenarios.

The truck-driving program, Walker said, has more than 300 years of combined experience. The 10-12 instructors — who rotate between truck-driving programs around the Quad-Cities — each have a minimum of 30 years of experience on the road.

Sarah Kirchner, a Midwest recruiter for Roehl Transport Inc., gave a presentation to an SCC truck-driving class in December. At the presentation, she emphasized her company’s reputation and its ability to get drivers home regularly.

“Drivers are looking for three things,” she said. “Home time, money and the way they’re treated.”

Kirchner, who drove trucks for 12 years, said her company’s freight grows 6-10 percent each year.

She added that she has recruited from SCC’s truck-driving program for years and estimates that 8-10 students are hired by the company each year.

“It’s a good program and the instructors are very caring,” she said. “I know it’s going to produce.”

Carlos Calderon, 32, of Bettendorf, was a package inspector at Alcoa until he was one of 80 employees downsized in March. He said he used to think being a truck driver was unglamorous but realized that the benefits and pay are good.

“It has the potential for better retirement,” he said.

Edwards said he spent most of his career working for financial reasons. This time, he said, he wants to work a little more for happiness.

The Long Grove, Iowa, resident said he looked at programs in Wisconsin and Texas before realizing there was a truck-driving program in his own back yard.

“I think it’s superb,” he said of the class. “I’m getting my money’s worth.”

Although he will take a pay cut, Edwards said truck-driving appeals to him because he can be his own boss.

“It’s more independent; you make more decisions yourself,” he said. “Out on the road, you don’t have anyone looking over your shoulder, and you don’t have a lot of politics involved.”

Trucks, Walker said, have gone a lot more hi-tech since he first started driving.

“The quality of life is better,” he said. “They are equipped better and ride better.”

Drivers used to get bad backs because of rough roads, Walker said. However, better suspension has allowed for more comfortable handling.

Additionally, many trucks are now equipped with power steering, air conditioning, GPS, and satellite communications. Some even have satellite TV, microwaves, VCRs, closets and portable toilets, he said.

“It’s like living back there in an apartment on wheels,” Walker said.

Kirchner said more women are in the industry now than there were 12 years ago when she was a driver.

“More and more women are getting into this field simply because they are getting paid the same rate of pay that a man makes,” she said.

Wlazlowsky said there are demographics that the company hopes to reach out to.

In terms of long-haul truck drivers, she said, only 5 percent are women and only 11 percent are black.

One of the difficulties with Hispanic recruitment, she said, is that culturally, the family unit is tight.

When the economy is good, many truck drivers opt to change jobs, she added.

After 2001, when the economy was shaky, driver wages slipped below construction wages, Wlazlowsky said. The median hourly earnings of a heavy-truck or tractor-trailer driver were $15.97, or about $33,000, in 2002, according to the Department of Labor Statistics.

And in this profession, Wlazlowsky said, it’s also not all about wages.

“The quality of life is so difficult,” she said. “Drivers get to go home and only spend a few days with families. Some has to really love the profession, love driving, likes being their own boss and likes the open road.”