* DC - US trucking employment hits new peak, but hiring slows
-- U.S. trucking employment rose for the fifth straight month in August, but at a slower pace, as the hiring crunch that slowed employment growth across the U.S.A. economy squeezed the industry.
The more than 100,000 motor carriers tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics added only 700 jobs in August from July, according to preliminary BLS data. In the previous four months, the agency’s data show trucking firms hired 2,600; 7,900; 5,300 and 3,400 employees, respectively. In total, the for-hire carriers had 1.46 million employees on their payrolls in August.
That surge in trucking employment pushed the industry past its pre-recession employment peak of early 2007 and kept the JOC.com For-Hire Trucking Employment Index at 100.8 in August, it’s highest ever. The revised index hit 100.8 in July after rising above 100 in May.
The U.S.A. economy added 173,000 jobs in August, fewer than economists expected and well below the 12-month trailing average of 247,000 per month. However, the national unemployment rate dropped to 5.1 percent, the lowest rate since April 2008. As far as the Federal Reserve Bank is concerned, that rate is in the range representing “full employment.”
Currently, trucking and intermodal companies and shippers say truck capacity is relatively readily available. That could change quickly if freight demand is strong this fall, as carriers can only add capacity to meet shipper demand when they can hire additional drivers...
Washington, DC, USA - JOC, by William B. Cassidy - Sep 05, 2015Labels: trucking industry jobs
![[Valid Atom 1.0]](valid-atom.png "Validate my Atom 1.0 feed")
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home