I remember someone posting a week or so back about grocery shelves being more empty lately, or at least that's what I think was posted. I've noticed that also. Seems the grocery stores near me aren't stocked up as much as usual. I assumed it was some sort of trucking issue or supply chain issue, but I haven't heard about any national trucking issue. I just needed to take my car in for repair and they said they need to order parts. They said it used to be a day or two to get the parts and now it could be a week or two. She mentioned something about shortage of truckers.
So I'm wondering what's going on? I haven't heard of any trucking strike/slow down. I doubt the truckers are moving, en mass, to a new profession. Is it the increase in gas prices? I can understand how that would lead to higher prices of goods but not slowdowns in delivery.
Cargo ships are hanging out at ports. This happens a lot when they have no place to go. So they move out of the way and sit around until a gig comes there way. The port near me might have 1-2. Now it has 5. It was around 8 at one point last year.
I live in a port city as well, and can verify this. Been a different story though since start of the year here, business as usual. I'm on the east coast in Canada, might make a difference. We don't seem to have any shortages of anything in my neck of the woods.
Shortage of delivery people, workers in supermarkets... shortage of workers in a lot of areas... and maybe some deliberate supply chain disruptions as well.
I have noticed that it depends a lot on which stores you go to. Some are fully stocked, and others have low inventories... it is weird though.
Shipping is fubar all over, international ocean break bulk is a sailors market right now and very hard to secure space.
I did see some videos about farmers being told to let their crops die, they'd be paid more for that than selling them. Imagine that will hit produce, milk and meat soon.
The [DS] is in every domain and putting the squeeze on everywhere.
The push for digital log books drove a number of old timers out of the industry. My dad almost gave it up but still a bit too young to retire.
Fuel prices the way they are, how can any owner operators make money?
I've been hearing that both diesel-engine parts and computer chips have been delayed, because of manufacturing problems over seas. These manufacturing delays have hurt truck repair the worst. Because of this, the fleet of on-road truckers is down significantly.
The lower quantity of trucks actively shipping has decreased, leading to systemic delivery problems along our just-in-time delivery system.
Someone who works in that area can probably provide more information. I've just been getting it secondhand from my company's supply-chain.
Sounds plausible. And if true could explain the significant delays in delivery.
There's been a major truck driver shortage for a few years now. Every now and then the local paper runs a 2 page ad from local companies basically begging for people to come drive.
Got a little insider info as my wife drives. if you're thinking about a career change where you only deal with yourself, trucking is the way to go. You don't ever have to do long haul either. She drives an 8 ton fuel truck. Truck is in our yard every night, she has computer in the truck that tells her her route for the day. She basically only deals with ppl via text / phone.
I won't tell you what she makes, but it's over 80 grand. She's only been with this company 2 years. She also has complete full benefits for us both.
Seriously, folks. Get into driving a truck if you're even thinking about it. The money is really good, and most companies have amazing benefits.
The problem with the trucking industry is the draw for antisocial people. The result is in the rare instances you must interact with your coworkers everyone is an ass hole.
I do not know the veracity of the claim....my son works for a neighborhood hardware chain store and they get two delivery trucks per week. He has been told that California is purposely delaying inspections and road clearances, Trucks are actually stacked up at the port (should be easy enough to verify). This is especially detrimental to food as a lot of it is spoiling at the port because "lack of inspectors". His pizzos speculate that Walmart could flex and break thru this but they won't because they can take the hit and it will (further) compromise small and independent chains and further consolidate the industry. Again, a LOT of speculation, but sorta makes sense.
The nation is short some 70k+ truck drivers for the size of the economy. It has always been short on drivers but Bidenomics seems to have exasperated the problem. Source: Am truck driver, had a driving job and 2 job offers at peak covid and still currently hear adds for driving jobs from essentially every trucking business in my area.
That's great that you're in the driving seat with your job, pun intended. But that still doesn't explain why things have somewhat recently seem to have gotten bad. If we're no worse off in terms of drivers and trucks, why the significant delays in transit times?
Maybe because easier jobs have got pay increases while that has been slow to transfer up to truck drivers? Maybe some burn out from driving during the pandemic? Also the recovering economy certainly had to have put a strain on an already understaffed industry.
Yeah, but before the scamdemic we didn't have these delivery delays. So why now, if roughly the same number of trucks are on the roads?
Deep state putting the brakes on goods no matter where their destination.
I heard that they are holding products at ports, not releasing the products and the truckers are just sitting with no loads.
Be ready for shortages, they are incoming fast.
I have been noticing this for a long time now. At first I thought it was due to "China flu shortage" - TP, hand sanitizer, rubbing alcohol, bleach, bullets, etc. As time passed, I thought it was because President Trump cut America from buying from China. Now, President Trump is not in office & there is still a shortage every week of one type of product or another in any store. Doesn't matter if it's a grocery store or department store, the products are skimpy. Start noticing the car dealerships, too, they're looking skimpy. They might look full but look past the front & you'll see skimpy. I keep thinking they're slowly getting us used to what socialism feels like until we hit communism.
Yeah, I heard new cars coming off the assembly line are way down due to chip shortage. However, my part has no chips in it. Seems that it's getting delayed due to some nation wide delivery issue.
Truck drivers taking unemployment gravy train too? Seems the whole country is at the trough.
Not likely. There was never any trucking layoffs. They actually eliminated our DOT hour regulations right after the covid hoax started in order to keep trucks moving.
Truckers I know say every asset they have is on the road. They can't get enough trucks and drivers to meet demands. Same story at companies we're trying to get products shipped out from. "Not enough trucks". I think we're at max employment or close to it and demand is off the chart, driving up prices and stretching capacity in many areas of the economy. We're seeing the effects in the shipping industry, housing, and shortages in the chip manufacturing are hurting auto, computer and other manufacturing.
As I mentioned in another reply, how might this cause big delays in transit time? The person at the dealership told me what used to take 1 or 2 days to receive (parts) now takes 1 or two weeks. That's a huge increase in time.
Like everything else, big business is falling lockstep into the fake shortage. I read an article 1-2 weeks ago that Walmart pallets were sitting in California, food rotting. Either Biden’s pay out for not working or big business furloughing truckers and dock workers is the cause, or both.
imo it has to do with the slow down of imported goods
Well the part if a catalytic converter for a Honda so it is made in Japan. However, I got the impression, maybe wrongly so, that the part is here somewhere in the US but it might take a while to get to my dealership. The girl told me she should get a tracking number tomorrow so she'll have a better idea then. I did ask about whether she knows if it's in stock anywhere in the US and we just have to wait for the transit time. That's when she mentioned that what used to be 1 or 2 days might now be 1 or 2 weeks for delivery.