Freight appeal: Hitting the road



By Tom Zed

A booming industry and ageing workforce are combining to create a looming shortfall of truck drivers. Industry experts 10 years ago predicted freight volumes in Australia would double by 2020.

More recently, the Federal Government’s Bureau of Transport Resource Economics has tipped the amount of freight being transported around the nation will triple by 2050.

Road freight is the most significant component of the land-based transport and logistics industry.

With the average age of Australian truck drivers now topping 45 years, industry insiders say a huge shortage of drivers is imminent.

Driving big trucks ranks highly on many little boys’ lists of things they want to do when they grow up.

By the time they are old enough to join the workforce, however, that tends to have slipped out of contention.

The South Australian Freight Council has been working to improve the image of truck driving as a career option and head off future skills shortages by doing what truckies do best – taking to the road with the Australian Trucking Association’s $1.3 million state-of-the-art interactive road safety and careers advisory truck on The Road Ahead national tour.

SA Freight Council chairman John McArdle says the tour demonstrates to school students that the transport and logistics industry is not all about driving trucks and semi-trailers but also is an essential part of the community.

“We’re facing a massive shortage of workers over the next decade yet are not on the radar screens of people looking for work, including many young people investigating the different industries available in Australia and the qualifications they need to enter those workforces,” he says.

Macklin Transport operations and business development manager Alan Evans says the timing of the tour is perfect as the industry is changing and many trucking companies are becoming more open to employing young people.

“Some of the older drivers are starting to move on,” he says.

“We’re always keen here to have a look at younger drivers because they don’t come from years of doing things a certain way.

“Some companies prefer to get more experienced drivers from other companies but young people wanting to get in now should go to a transport company and say they want to be a truck driver.”

South Australian Freight Council general manager Neil Murphy says truck driving offers great career opportunities as drivers can progress from entry-level jobs, such as local light freight, to higher-paying jobs driving bigger trucks long-haul and even to such non-driving jobs as scheduling and logistics.

“But if you’re inexperienced, you need to be prepared to keep knocking on doors, keep trying and don’t give up at the first knockback,” he says. Salaries range from $35,000 a year for a delivery van driver to $80,000 or $90,000 a year driving B-doubles on interstate runs.

Truck driver Zahid Hamidi, 31, was employed by Macklin Transport the day after he got his HC (Heavy Combination) class licence.

“People have different ideas about truck drivers but now it’s completely changing. You’re working with professionals and it’s all about skill,” he says.

“Some people don’t like working long hours or being away overnight but you can just work locally and be home every night. It’s a great job.”

FREIGHT FACTS:

• About 17 per cent of the state’s gross state product is provided through the transport industry.
• About 8 per cent of the workforce, or almost 100,000 people, are employed in the transport and logistics sector in SA.
• Almost 50 per cent of transport and logistics workers are aged over 45 years.
• More than 75 per cent of workers are men.
• 90 per cent of tranport and logistics workers are involved in freight.

Article from The Advertiser, June, 2010.