Less Truckers Means Higher Prices For Consumers

Apr. 27, 2018

I know that we keep harping on the trucking shortage, but the struggle is real. And it’s about to start affecting the direct consumer.

According to USA Today, reported through The Hustle.co, there is a shortage of 51k truck drivers nationwide. I know that companies like FW Logistics is paying top dollar to hire in some new drivers and the race is on through just about every other trucking company as well.

There have been so many articles that I have read in the last few weeks, on trying to encourage the younger generation to replace the baby boomers. The logistics industry is just trying to keep up with the boom of eCommerce partnered with the reliable truckers that have been trucking for the last 25 years. It just so happens that the timing is a bit off.

So what does that mean for the consumer? Well, since wages are increasing, by as much as 10% just in the last year, the price of product is going up and consumers are going to pay.

Unfortunately, companies that have been covering the shipping costs to keep their prices low, are going to be in a bad place if they don’t pass off some of the cost.

“Tyson Foods — the country’s biggest chicken distributor and the geniuses behind Any’tizers — say they’re going to have to increase the cost of your favorite frozen tenders to offset the $200m increase in cost.” -TheHustle.co

3PL companies like FW Logistics have an advantage to keeping our pricing somewhat reasonable due to our ability to flex into warehousing space and using trucks that we already own, but some logistics firms just aren’t that lucky.

We will keep you updated on the industry and in the meantime, let us know if you want a new career. We’ve got the work and need more people like you.

Shannon Nute, MBA, Marketing Specialist, FW Logistics