June jobs data confirmed that there is no easy fix to trucking’s labor market woes.
Category: Freight Research
Three Data Points For Better Conversations About the Trucker Shortage
Hiring at trucking firms slowed in May according to payroll data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning. After a disappointing April, when private sector job gains were weighed down by supply chain constraints and a surprisingly tight labor market, truck transportation industry employment fell by 1,900 jobs (seasonally adjusted) in May. Trucking…
Eating-Out Caught Up With Eating-In during April for the First Time since the Pandemic Began
Americans’ spending at restaurants and bars caught up with their at-home food spending in April 2021 for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to data published today by the U.S. Census Bureau. It was a remarkable turnaround from a year ago when per-capita eating out dollars hit their lowest level…
Where did all the drivers go?
With sky-high expectations for surging job gains as the reopening of the economy accelerated, the April Jobs Report had every reason to disappoint. Employment growth was strong compared to a “normal” month over the past decade but underwhelming compared to job gains in recent months; stable unemployment, shadow unemployment and labor force participation are also…
First 2021 Hurricane Forecasts Predict Record Storms
Colorado State University’s first forecasts for the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season anticipate an “above-average probability for major hurricanes making landfall along the continental U.S. coastline”. They anticipate 17 named storms (versus 12.1 historical average); this is even higher than last year’s April forecast, which anticipated 16 named storms but resulted in 30 named storms. Of…
Did Winter Weather Snow the Signal in February’s Headline Jobs Data?
For the second month in a row, nonfarm payroll data reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as part of their monthly Employment Situation Report was underwhelming. The U.S. economy gained 379,000 jobs (SA) in February 2021, coming on the heels of a disappointing January. (In retrospect, January wasn’t as disappointing as initially reported: The…
Unemployment is Still High, but the Labor Market for Truckers is Comparatively Tight
The labor market proved more resilient in January than many had anticipated, with the unemployment rate falling to 6.5% compared to an average forecast of 6.7%. Despite an early-month surge in Covid-19 infections, the spread of new virus mutations, and political upheaval, businesses added 49,000 jobs last month according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics,…
What will happen to 300,000 package delivery drivers in 2021?
With 2020 squarely in the rear view mirror, the freight industry is now firmly on the down slope of the long-feared parcelpocalypse (my term) or packagemaggedon (other peoples’, better, term). The tail end of returns will continue to work their way through the system, and the combination of new mobility limitations plus late December’s fiscal…
Trends to Watch from Today’s Retail Sales Data
Breaking the trend of recent months, November retail data disappointed while factory output data (released yesterday) generally beat forecasts. The combined data provide a portrait of the freight economy on the eve of the most recent wave of community lockdowns and just before the official start of the holiday shopping season Here are a couple…
Long-Haul Jobs are Driving Trucking’s “Shecession”
Trucking firms continued to add jobs in November according to data released this morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics: Trucking industry employment increased by 0.9% (12,700 jobs, seasonally adjusted) in November, an accelerating pace from the 0.5% (7,400) pace reported from September to October. Compared to a year ago, truck transportation employment is still…