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ASSOCIATIONINSIGHT Portable Sanitation Association International News BIWEEKLY EDITION JUNE 23, 2021 Page 4 A Closer Look at the Truck Driver Shortage…continued from page 2 Drivers who fail their drug tests must enroll in a return-to-work program and pass a drug test before they are permitted to get back behind the wheel. Of the 64,846 drivers with violations between January 6, 2020 and April 1, 2021, only 10,609 have passed a return-to-duty drug test, according to the April 1, 2021 FMCSA Clearinghouse report. A total of 54,237 drivers remain on prohibited status, and 41,029 have not yet started the return- to-work process. In other words, a large portion of those cited for drug and alcohol use do not return to the road again quickly, if ever. Some industry sources suggest that a few of these drivers work elsewhere in the industry, but that doesn't solve the behind-the-wheel shortage in the near term. Why Doesn't Someone Do Something? Systemic change takes time—more than you have when it comes to your current labor shortage. And although Congress is looking at lowering the minimum driver age, that won't happen quickly. Even if it does, there is a long path between convincing an 18-year-old to train as a truck driver, them completing their course, and you finding one you want to entrust with a vehicle valued at over $100,000. Eventually the government will get around to dealing with the disconnect between state and federal laws on cannabis, just as they did with alcohol after Prohibition ended. In the meantime, this will continue to be a challenge in trucking. Much has been said and written about whether the extended unemployment benefits being paid are contributing to the shortage. Whatever you think about that remember these important things: • The shortage began well before the unemployment benefits and pay for drivers has been inching up for years. ATA reports the median pay is around $55,000 plus health and retirement benefits. • Extra unemployment benefits will soon go away. The driver shortage won't. As any portable sanitation operator knows, this is not a role someone can leap off their sofa and fill overnight. Potential drivers who are waiting for unemployment to run out still need training as well as medical and drug screenings. And there are more hoops to jump through after that before anyone can become a driver for your company. Employers have to think past the short term if they really want to solve the problem. • Capitalism is at work. The laws of supply and demand suggest that as pay rises, driving jobs will be more attractive as compared to lesser paid options, and then more people will be willing to take the jobs. This, of course, will contribute to higher costs for everything the drivers haul, but that is outside the realm of what portable sanitation companies can affect. Your prices will go up, but so will everyone else's. Here is what the National Federation of Independent Businesses reported in May 2021: "Raising compensation is about the only way owners have to remedy the labor shortage problem. A net 22 percent [of small businesses] plan to raise compensation in the next three months, up 2 points. Eight percent cited labor costs as their top business problem and 26 percent said that labor quality was their top business problem, the top business concern." Continued on page 5