The latest monthly report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows a mixed picture for the transportation industry. While trucking employment was relatively flat in February, warehousing employment also fell significantly.

Truck Transportation Sector

The trucking sector lost 300 jobs in February, the smallest single-month change since August 2022. Total industry employment is now 1,551,200.

However, the number of employees in January of 1,551,500 was revised downward by 4,200 after seasonal adjustment. The December value was also revised downward by 1,500 positions, bringing the total to 1,551,800 positions.

Despite these downward revisions, February’s total employment of 1,551,200 is still 3,000 more than October.

Warehouse Sector

In contrast to the trucking sector, employment in the warehousing sector has been steadily declining. The sector lost 6,800 jobs in February, bringing the total number of jobs to 1,758,700. This is 183,500 fewer than the peak of 1,942,200 reached in May 2022.

Other key findings

• Weekly truckload employment hours for non-managerial workers decreased to 40.3 hours in January, the lowest level since April 2020.
• Monthly truckload employment data is on the decline, with January employment reaching its lowest level of 544,300. The highest level since May 2022.
•  Railway employment in February decreased slightly to 152,800, but was still higher than the previous year’s 151,400.

Industry Insights

David Spencer of Arrive Logistics attributes the stability in truck transportation employment to the relative stability in truckload demand. “Strong consumer spending and a rundown of inventories have retailers returning to just-in-time ordering patterns,” he said.

Mazen Danaf of Uber Freight highlights the decline in hours worked by truck drivers, suggesting a potential shortage of drivers. “The weekly figure for January fell ‘sharply’ in the past year to 40.3 hours, which was close to the level of April 2020, the depth of the pandemic,” he said.

Conclusion

The latest employment report released by the BLS paints a mixed picture for the transportation industry. Employment in trucking is relatively stable, but employment in warehousing continues to decline. Industry experts attribute these trends to factors such as consumer spending, inventory levels and driver availability.