Employment in Alberta up among shippers, receivers and truck drivers, says report

Trucking HR Canada’s (THRC) Alberta Labour Market Information (LMI) snapshot for the first quarter of 2024 shows employment among transport truck drivers, shippers and receivers increased in the first quarter, and points to job losses in other sector occupations.

“The job vacancy rate in truck transportation fell from 8.3 per cent to 4.1 per cent in the year leading up to Q4 2023. The results are significant, especially since vacancies in general across Alberta hit record highs in 2022,” says Craig Faucette, chief program officer, Trucking HR Canada. “Reflecting challenges in the transportation sector, there were job losses among couriers and messengers, material handlers, managerial and administrative positions.”

The Alberta Motor Transport Association (AMTA) said it is pleased to see the job vacancy rate for truck transportation in 2023 decreased. Seeing this improvement spurs the association even further to continue efforts in continuing to close that gap through programs, initiatives and work with membership, partners and government.

Some highlights of the report include:

• Labour supply in the first quarter of 2024 is holding steady, with the supply of drivers increasing by seven per cent and an increase in the number of active job seekers across the sector.
• Employment of transport truck drivers in Alberta increased by 6.8 per cent in Q1 2024, with 47,100 drivers employed, up 3,000 compared with Q1 2023.
• Job vacancies over the entire sector declined almost 60 per cent in the last quarter of 2023.
• Total employment in Alberta’s trucking and logistics sector in the first quarter of 2024 was 110,200 workers, down 4,200 employees from the previous quarter (Q4, 2023) but roughly the same as Q1 2023, falling by just 0.1 per cent. Employment gains were made among shippers and receivers, up 13.4 per cent from Q1 2023.
• First quarter job losses were highest amongst couriers and messengers, with 2,700 fewer workers in Q1 2024, down by almost 44 per cent compared to Q1 2023.
• Employment of material handlers also decreased by 20 per cent with 1,700 fewer employees than in the same period last year.
• Managerial and administrative numbers decreased by almost five per cent from Q1 2023 to Q1 2024.

In March, THRC released its labour market report – Driving Progress – the New Road Ahead –  for the trucking and logistics sector, saying job vacancies could exceed 40,000 by 2030.

“Workforce investments and HR best practices are working. They have driven industry recruitment performance to new heights with significantly more women, youth and immigrants joining our sector,” said Angela Splinter, CEO, Trucking HR Canada. “However, workforce demand continues to outpace supply, with a strong capacity being our nation’s first line of defense against supply chain disruptions. Continued investments can be made with confidence — programs and resources are making a difference for businesses in every sector of Canada’s economy, and for Canadians.”

Key findings from the national report include:

• Vacancies will exceed 40,400 by 2030 if ongoing support to attract and retain more workers is not provided.
• The top concern (33 per cent) expressed by employers is higher costs — including fuel, equipment, insurance and labour, with labour shortages for truck drivers ranking second (17 per cent).
• Overall, there were 26,235 more women in trucking and logistics, up 27 per cent (from 97,135 to 123,370) in 2021 over 2016. During this same period, the proportion of women in the overall Canadian workforce remained stagnant at 48 per cent.
• Youth (under the age of 25) employed in trucking and logistics increased to 10 per cent in 2021 — the sector employed 34,185 more youth than in 2016. In just five years, the number of youth drivers almost doubled — accounting for 18,690 people behind the wheel and 25 per cent of trucking and logistics workers. Over the same period, the number of people under 25 in the Canadian workforce decreased by eight per cent.
• One in four companies will likely have to delay plans to expand their business because it cannot hire enough drivers.

The national project is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Sectoral Workforce Solutions Program.

The Alberta snapshot, produced by THRC in partnership with the AMTA, was funded in part by the Government of Alberta and released July 22.