By Bill SargentAccording to the American Trucking Association about 67% of America’s surface freight — approximately 11.27 billion tons – was moved by truck in 2024. But this sector of our economy is facing a persistent and growing shortage of truck drivers; estimated to be between 60,000-80,000 this year. This has a significant impact on the U.S. supply chain (i.e., getting products to market).
Of those driving trucks today, about 18%, or approximately 720,000 drivers, are foreign-born and this number is growing, not declining. Without them the transportation of goods in our nation would come to a screeching halt! At the same time concerns are growing that many of the foreign-born truckers cannot read English, let alone road signage. Recent reports in the news have heighted these concerns:
On August 12, an illegal alien, Harjinder Singh, made an illegal U-turn on a Florida freeway with his semi-truck and trailer. His action caused three deaths and additional injuries. Singh – who had illegally entered our country in 2018 – had a California issued commercial driver’s license (CDL)
On October 15, Borko Stankovic was driving his 18-wheeler on Highway 20 in Indiana when he failed to slow for traffic and then made a last minute evasive left turn into opposing traffic where he hit a Subaru. The 54-year-old Subaru driver died at the scene. Stankovic entered the U.S. illegally in February 2011 and is the owner of two companies in the United States which received over $36,000 in federally-backed COVID loans, loans which were subsequently forgiven by the Biden Administration. Additionally, he was arrested in November 2018 on Long Island, New York for resisting arrest.
Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Trica McLaughlin said Stankovic is a “criminal illegal alien [who] didn’t even have a valid CDL“ and that Homeland Security is working to get “…illegal alien truck drivers who often don’t even know basic traffic laws, off of our highways.“
On October 23, a 21 year-old illegal immigrant from India was allegedly responsible for a major pileup on a southern California freeway that left three people dead and four others injured. Jashanpreet Singh is accused of being under the influence of drugs. It’s believed he entered the U.S. in 2022 and was released into the interior of our country by the Biden administration. McLaughlin said “this accident follows a disturbing trend of illegal aliens driving 18-wheelers and semi-trucks on America’s roads. “
So, what’s the answer to finding a balance between a lack of truck drivers and protecting the public from those who are in the country illegally, those who don’t speak English and/or can’t read road signs, and/or those who don’t know the basic rules of the road or choose to ignore them?
Florida has gone to the U.S. Supreme Court asking for permission to sue the states of California and Washington related to the deadly August 12th accident caused by an illegal alien who was issued a CDL by both states. The high court has jurisdiction in such cases. If Florida is successful, it could change the process for issuing Commercial Driver’s Licenses. But this is reactive not proactive (i.e., punishing for actions taken versus stopping the action in the first place). And, of course, this assumes that aliens who have already broken our laws by entering the U.S. illegally, will attempt to follow the laws requiring a CDL for semi-truck drivers.
Some possible solutions:
– In the past the U.S. has allowed the immigration of individuals who have skills we need. In this situation we could require proficiency in English (something the Trump Administration is already working on), an understanding of how to handle large rigs, and knowledge of our traffic laws (i.e., obtaining a U.S. Commercial Driver’s License).
– Even though many U.S. trucking companies are small operators with ten trucks or less, we could require all trucking companies to verify legal immigration status and valid CDL’s before hiring drivers and levy a fine against those who fail to do so.
– We have all seen weighing stations as we drive on our interstates. Perhaps in addition to verifying the legal weight of trucks on our highways, officers could also check for valid CDL’s for the drivers.
No solution is perfect, but we need to find a balance between the shortage of truck drivers that keep out country “moving” and safeguarding the motoring public.
COMMENTS:
From a retired teacher living in Pennsylvania:
This is a timely article! I applaud Florida for their efforts to stop the carnage!
Hopefully, a positive ruling in the courts will encourage other states to follow suit!
Concerning the State Police using the weight stations to find Truck Driver lawbreaker, this has been happening. I don’t know how widespread it is, but a trucker filmed an arrest online and discussed the fact that a language proficiency test had been given to him. I hope that this will continue and spread across the country!
As our educators, business owners and parents encourage students to consider blue-collar careers, there is hope for an increase in our truck driver pool.
Thank you for continuing to keep watch and share your thoughts on many subjects that affect our daily lives!
From a former NASA rocket scientist:
Autonomous shipping (i.e. self driving trucks) are right around the corner.
From a retired attorney living in the state of Washington:
Lots of good points here. But if the literacy tests are mandated and those drivers disappear the problems will multiply. Too few drivers will cause trucking companies to offer higher pay to attract qualified people. As always happens the increased cost will be passed to the consumer. Inflation will result, something that Trump promised to fix. This will make it even worse. I do not know the answer
From a retired UTMB employee:
The Constitution gives the federal government the authority to regulate commerce between the states and certainly the trucking industry is at the heart of interstate commerce. We cannot have one set of rules for the state of California and another for Texas. Consequently federal requirement that CDL holders have a good command of the English language the ability to read street signs, and to understand the rules of the road is a valid federal mandate.
From a former labor leader living in Texas:
The solution for illegal immigrants, deport them all!
From a Galveston resident:
The wheels of justice move slowly. Stop the crime before it starts, which in this case means stopping illegal immigration before it happens.
