More drivers urgently needed

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This article was published 08/09/2023 (1099 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As Canada celebrates Trucking Week, the spotlight is firmly on a growing crisis long in the making: the shortage of qualified truck drivers.

With the province’s economy heavily reliant on the trucking industry to transport goods and keep the supply chain moving, the shortage of truck drivers is a cause for concern.

“We’ve seen a significant increase in demand for our training programs over the past year, but it’s still a struggle to meet the industry’s needs,” Professional Transport Driver Training School general manager Ryan Kyle told the Sun.

Students at the school echo these concerns.

“I decided to pursue a career in trucking because of the job stability and due to the fact that I have been operating in the transportation business in Nigeria before I arrived in Canada,” said Akinwole Omole, a student who’s nearing the end of his training.

To address the shortage, truck driving schools in Brandon have been working tirelessly to train and prepare the next generation of drivers.

“We’ve had some pretty good groups of students, and most of the ones that we’ve had are already employed and are just upgrading their training to get fully qualified. We’ve also had companies hire and send them to us for training so they can pick and use them,” Accent Driving School founder Henry Kyle told the Sun.

Professional Transport and Accent Driver Training Schools, like others in the region, have experienced an increase in enrolment.

“We’ve had a mix of younger individuals seeking a career change and older adults exploring a new path,” Henry Kyle added. “It’s a diverse group, which is great for the industry’s future.”

One of the driving schools’ notable successes is the placement rate of their graduates.

“One hundred per cent of our graduates find employment once they have a class one licence. Many of them are now working for well-established companies in the region,” Ryan Kyle said. “But a lot of our students are government-funded. Part of the requirement is that they have to have a job placement in place before they can be funded so that when they complete the course, and they have their licence, they go to that employer to start the second phase of the training so that they can become a quality truck driver.”

The shortage of truck drivers underscores the need for individuals who possess not only the technical skills, but also the right qualities for the job.

Ryan Kyle highlighted some of these crucial attributes: “Patience, adaptability and a strong work ethic are essential for success in this field. We instil these qualities in our students through rigorous training.”

Students are aware of the importance of these qualities.

“The training goes beyond just driving. We learn about handling different situations on the road, maintaining the vehicle and ensuring safety for ourselves and others,” Omole added.

“The trucking industry needs more drivers because of the aging population of the truck drivers in Manitoba and the supply chain demand is only getting worse. And that freight doesn’t just find its way to the stores by courier, a lot of the stores, as you probably well notice yourself and your family going shopping? Automotive parts are getting hard to come by. That kind of stuff, like the whole world is, there’s a shortage of almost everything,” Ryan Kyle said.

Ryan Kyle says that the quality of students coming for training “has not changed a lot.

“What I do notice is that a lot of the immigrant population that is coming to us now have a greater language barrier than they used to,” he said. “But between the immigrant population and the refugee population that we see, we are noticing a decline in their ability to understand the English language. But we don’t let it completely get in our way.”

As for the future of the industry, “What I see for the future of the entire trucking industry is that all the trucking companies are going to have to create their own secondary training programs because the days of hiring truck drivers with two years or more experience — which for many years, that’s what most trucking companies required — those days are gone,” he added.

Ryan Kyle explained that a lot of the drivers (both men and women) who have two years of experience are scarce now, as companies have realized that the stack of applications they used to have is not there anymore.

“I’ve spoken to quite a few major carriers that are running into the problem of staffing shortages; everybody’s short. But we’re a driving school — we don’t provide them with years of experience.

“Trucking companies need to create their own training programs to be able to take our students and train them on the job to be efficient and safe because you just can’t find employees with two years or more experience anymore. Those truck drivers are becoming harder and harder to find.”

Henry Kyle agreed on the need for trucking firms to create training programs.

“I think that’s an excellent idea. We do teach excellent courses that cover driving skills and safety. However, we can’t teach everything in the limited time we have. Employers should have mentorship programs to guide new drivers,” he told the Sun.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez recognized the significance of Trucking Week in Canada and the essential role truckers play in the economy and daily lives.

“This week marks National Trucking Week here in Canada! It’s a time to reflect on the value that truckers and the trucking industry bring to our country. There are 1.2 million commercial vehicles on our roads, and they support internal trade between our provinces and territories which accounts for nearly one-fifth of our GDP. That adds up to $370 billion,” he stated.

Rodriguez explained that road transport also accounts for 42 per cent of Canada’s merchandise trade and that a huge portion of the nation’s economy literally runs on wheels, but the value of trucking is more than just economic.

“The food in your store, the medicine in your pharmacy, and the goods on our shelves are thanks to the work of truckers, and Canadians can count on them to deliver! The work they do undeniably makes our lives easier and our supply chains stronger,” the minister stated. “Truckers spend long hours on the road and a great deal of time away from their own families. It is important to be mindful of the impact this can have on them and the challenges they face. Our government recognizes the shortage of drivers in the industry and is working actively with industry officials to develop new solutions and programs to boost recruitment.”

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