Problems of truck drivers pdf

Obesity can increase the risk of developing other health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, lack of libido, and more. When truck drivers become too obese, they may also become unable to work on top of having a myriad of health problems.

While smoking is inherently a personal choice, many drivers find it necessary to smoke in order to stay awake and relieve stress. Apart from cigarette smoke, drivers are constantly exposed to gasoline fumes and other harmful chemicals, thus increasing their risk of developing lung cancer. Sleep apnea is a common health issue among truck drivers, especially those that smoke and who are obese.

Sleep apnea is the condition wherein a person is unable to breathe properly while sleeping, causing unrestful sleep, loud snoring, mental issues, daytime sleepiness, etc. When the issue becomes too severe, people with sleep apnea need to sleep with a breathing apparatus so that can get restful sleep. Truck drivers stay in the confined spaces of their cabins for hours at a time. Because of this lack of mobility, truck drivers are susceptible to all sorts of muscle pain, most especially in their neck and lower back.

Moreover, truck drivers can also injure their muscles when improperly lifting heavy objects or doing strenuous activity after a long period of limited movement. The truck driver population is not only plagued by physical ailments—they are also prone to developing mental health issues like depression and anxiety. The common causes for this include:. Truck drivers spend most of their time alone with little to no contact with others, leading to feelings of loneliness and depression.

Having no one to talk to and driving for hours on end gives one a lot of time to overthink. Deadlines to meet, maintenance issues, problems at home—the job of a truck driver can be as stressful as any other.

And without healthy outlets to relieve stress, truck drivers tend to bottle it up and let it simmer in their minds. Another common health issue for truck drivers is dehydration. Because drivers have limited breaks, they may not be hydrating their bodies enough. Moreover, many drivers would choose not to drink at all to avoid having to pull over and cause delays in their trip, hence not enough water in their systems.

Dehydration can cause headaches, dizziness, dry mouth, and increased sleepiness. In the long-term, constant dehydration can lead to kidney stones, hypovolemic shock, seizures, and even renal failure. Given that many truck drivers are obese and smoke cigarettes, they are prone to developing heart conditions like heart attacks, coronary artery disease, and heart failure, just to name a few. They just need to hit the print button.

These problems contribute to the high driver turnover rates that are responsible for the truck driver shortage. Recognizing these problems and how they affect the future of the trucking industry, some companies have tried to make improvements to their pay rates and the packages they offer drivers.

Increased Mileage Rate. Some companies offer higher mileage rates and bonuses to encourage people to sign up as a driver. Some companies are reaching out to a bigger audience to find potential drivers by recruiting women, ex-military personnel and foreign workers. Many of them need the job to stay in North America or they have other reasons for dealing with the unfair treatment truck drivers deal with. Longer trailers. Some companies are investing in longer trailers so they can move more freight per trip.

Moving more freight per trip means fewer trips but it also means the driver is taking even more risks because these trucks are harder to handle. And they may only get paid a few cents more per mile. His reply? Werner is a mega carrier. Leathers knows paying truckers by the hour would cost Werner too much money. Leathers goes on to explain that Werner has many different pay incentive packages for drivers. The job is even more challenging and dangerous now than it was many years ago and before deregulation.

The shocking driver turnover rates responsible for the truck driver shortage will continue to grow as the demand for drivers increase, unless steps are taken to fix these problems. As of now, it appears that the few incentives trucking companies are offering is not enough to attract enough new drivers to the industry.

There are too many other careers available to them that do pay a fair wage and offer great benefits. Much of what the trucking companies are doing to work with the trucker shortage, can be viewed as temporary fixes. The fixes offer no long-term solution for the problems causing the driver shortage. Correct the problems or one day, there will be large fleets of trucks sitting in parking lots with no one left to drive them.

They may be able to get drivers from foreign shores, but the cost of the insurance claims of a cheaply paid, low skilled workforce, along with the damage the poorly trained drivers incur, will eventually put some of the carriers out of business. It is pretty tough for a CEO these days to justify his new Mercedes, yards full of brand new equipment, hundreds of office staff, glass tower buildings, yet no one left to drive the trucks.

These companies must re-evaluate their positions and soon. With no real change in sight, the truck driver shortage is sure to get worse, before it ever gets better. Truck drivers will continue to look for new opportunities and ways to make a living outside of the trucking industry if these problems are not addressed properly.

If drivers are not treated better soon and given fair pay, experienced, skilled drivers will continue to leave the industry. In addition, potential drivers may reconsider their career choice and choose a job that does provide a fair wage for the work provided. The industry needs drivers. Yes truck driving job pay is increasing. The pay increase is long overdue. The trucking companies are moving more toward paying a fair wage to truckers, only because there is a severe shortage of CDL drivers in the U.

And the shortage is getting worse. They are increasing wages to attract drivers. Many trucking companies are moving toward having dash cams in their trucks.

Some are making it mandatory. Some are giving the drivers a choice. Many truck drivers consider this a serious invasion of privacy and are leaving their job, when the employer announces driver facing cams are not an option. Definitely a deal breaker for the majority of truck drivers. This issue is adding to the truck driver shortage in the U. Yes, many drivers cannot pass a drug test and are therefore unable to hold a CDL. This is also increasing the shortage of professional truck drivers available in the U.

Yes, this will cause drivers to leave their jobs, as they do not wish to comply with the mandate. In turn, this will cause problems of epic proportions in transporting goods throughout the U.

Not a good situation at all. If you click on one of the product or service links on this site, we may receive commissions if you purchase something. Learn more This post may contain affiliate links. You can read the full disclosure policy, which is pretty dull, but here it is. What is the Truck Driver Shortage? However, we are of the belief that the truck driver shortage is a really a myth.

The main reason is contributed to the astounding driver turnover rates, that have currently exceeded 90 percent for some time now. There are lots of potential drivers interested in becoming career truck drivers, but once many of them discover: the low pay the lack of respect the often poor working conditions and the demands of the job they abandon the idea.

Low wages. There was a time when truck drivers made decent money for their hard work. This is not true of many truck driving jobs. The cost of living has greatly increased but wages have not kept up with the cost of living. Interesting to note this started with Deregulation. Too much work unpaid. Restricted driving hours. The trucking industry is heavily regulated. The ELD tells the driver when he can be on the road and when he should be off duty.

Unfair fines. Some truck drivers are afraid to depend on a truck driving and fear being replaced by autonomous trucks. They are available now but not reliable enough to pose a problem. But one day they might. After all, technology is always changing and improving.