My spouse is an ex-pat Glaswegian who worked as a maritime lawyer for a number of years. On a fateful holiday to British Columbia she met me and opted for a brand new life in Canada. She is now a co-owner, dispatcher and office manager of our small family-owned trucking and contracting business.
I was very interested when my partner found this website. She has struggled to find qualified drivers for the past few years and we have often talked about looking in the UK and other countries for the right people but we didn’t know where to start.
Here is my personal perspective :
According to the Canadian government, there are about 35,000 unfilled trucking jobs in Canada. There is definitely a critical shortage of experienced qualified drivers in the more demanding fields of specialised trucking. Top notch, experienced operators can virtually name their price. As for the more generic side of trucking, there is another major problem. The larger trucking firms have been in rate wars for so many years that they have driven the trucking prices into the ground. Consequently, the industry has not been able to support decent wages or decent working conditions for drivers and employees. Driving wages in some sectors have hardly changed over the past 20 years. There has been a trend for longer hours and more demanding work on the drivers for less money and benefits. In other words, drivers working for poor pay in substandard conditions has been effectively subsidizing the big companies. Older drivers have stuck with these companies, afraid to change careers. They have been willing to see their standard of living eroded rather than to risk unemployment in their senior years. Now as the older guys are retiring it is difficult to attract enough young people into an industry where the hours are long, working demands are stiff and the wages are inferior. I think this is the biggest reason that there is an acute shortage of drivers.
Assuming that there are 35,000 unfilled trucking jobs in Canada, there are also many drivers currently employed that would not stand a chance of a job if the driver shortage wasn’t so critical. In other words, the industry is hiring many inferior employees in order to fill the gap. In the 33 years that I have been trucking I have seen a dramatic decline in the professionalism evident amongst drivers. Bad attitudes and incompetence are giving our industry a tarnished reputation. Quite obviously, we need lots of better people with better attitudes but we will only achieve this when good people are properly paid for their work and they are given due recognition for professionalism.
I know that the big companies are recruiting potential drivers in the UK. Sadly, I feel that they are looking to prey upon a new source of cheap labour. They recognise that many of the guys and gals that would like to relocate to Canada have no contacts here and that they have little knowledge of typical incomes and costs, and no practical knowledge of what it takes to live well in Canada. I am appalled at some of the things that I have heard from ex-pats who have taken jobs with some of these big generic companies. It is just a continuation of the exploitation of workers that we Canadians have witnessed for the past many years. The sad thing is that most of these huge generic trucking companies will ultimately end up in bankruptcy anyway as they strive to drive the bottom line lower and lower all the time. In these outfits the people are disposable.
From my perspective as an owner of a small Canadian trucking company, there is no sense in trying to compete against the big outfits who are all fighting over large volumes and large contracts for moving bulk freight. By the time the load brokers and middle men have taken their cut there isn’t enough left for the drivers and owner/operators who actually do the work. The only market where there is still good money in trucking is dealing with smaller firms which demand quality service and therefor better than average, skilled truckers. I would say that there are increasing numbers of businesses who are tired of the bad service and poor attitudes of the big trucking companies. There is a niche for smaller trucking firms that can guarantee quality of service, move the freight on time, and get it there intact. The small trucking companies have personality unlike most of their big cousins. I know that many businesses appreciate personable, presentable,and professional drivers who effectively are ambassadors for the businesses whose freight they move. Customers who appreciate the difference are willing to pay higher freight rates and are more loyal to their favourite trucking firms. In turn, the trucking firms can offer decent wages and benefits to the drivers and employees. In the right circumstances, trucking in Canada can be an enjoyable and rewarding career. But, the secret is that you have to be good. The fact is, there are nowhere near enough good Canadian truck drivers to fill the opportunities so if you are good there is no reason to be working for a poor wage. “Good” of course means more than just driving skills - attitude is just as important if not more so. I have been really impressed with the attitudes of many women who are now entering into this male dominated career. From a business-owner’s perspective it is much better to invest time and money in training and grooming individuals with good attitude and good work ethics. Good driving skills, of course, must come with hours of experience and in most cases people with good attitudes eventually make good drivers. On the other hand, people who can handle the machine but have personal problems and poor attitudes will always be a liability to any trucking firm.
After all this preamble, what I am trying to say is that there are is tremendous opportunity for the right people to find a good trucking job in Canada. Don’t even waste your time with the scum outfits. It takes a lot more looking around but I strongly suggest that if you are ambitious and qualified that you focus on smaller, more specialised firms that would be interested in sponsoring you. The best opportunities will not be in the big cities so if you cannot hack a small town environment, don’t expect it to be as rewarding. The best jobs are in the more remote parts of Canada. Typically they will be in the areas where there are strong mining , forestry , oil and gas industries. There is lots of good paying work and if you value good communities, good people, and healthy lifestyles you will almost certainly be successful in these locations.
We live in, and our work is based from, a relatively remote area in the rugged mountains of SE British Columbia. Our winters are long but we enjoy playing in the snow and finding entertainment in what mother nature brings. Summers are beautiful. We are surrounded by tall mountains and big fresh water lakes. Fishing, hunting, camping, boating, hiking etc are wonderful. Crime is minimal and the water and air are fresh, clean and healthy. We homeschool our kids and enjoy lots of good friends amongst the capable and independent people that thrive on this life-style. The rural life means the occasional trip to a bigger city but instead of being a chore it becomes an outing that we look forward to. Most people would consider this area remote because we are about 300 miles to the nearest large city but now with internet, satellite TV, etc we are well connected to world affairs. Transportation is easy but most UK people would be initially surprised at the distances between places. You soon get used to it and, in fact, it becomes enjoyable. For example, our children go to cubs and guides in a neighbouring town every Monday which means a 1-hour drive each way. Everyone treats this as a social outing. There are many sports activities between neighbouring communities and this often involves drives of 50 to 100 km. The roads are good. In many ways, the fact that we are in the trucking industry gives us the best of both worlds. We enjoy all the benefits of a rural lifestyle and affordable living while at the same time, our work takes us to every corner of North America. We truck to Alaska, to the east coast, the southern states, California, etc. It gives me the opportunity to go everywhere and I enjoy taking my wife, kids and friends with me on frequent occasions. The loneliness of the long miles is greatly reduced by companionship and it is becoming much more common to see husband/wife teams in the trucking industry.
In terms of what an above-average qualified driver should be making, I believe that a single driver in most long-haul applications should be making about 50cents per mile if you are paid on a mileage basis. You should not be expected to be unpaid for long layovers and decent companies will pay extra for all drops, pick ups, border crossing and tarping. Hourly wages should be in the $20-25 range. Check out other benefits carefully because some companies will offer additional benefits like medical/dental plans, assistance for relocation, housing subsidies, vacation pay etc. It varies depending upon the location and circumstances but there is no need for well-experienced drivers to be working for poverty wages. There is also no reason why you should be expected to break the laws ( hours of service or running unsafe equipment) in order to make big money. Good drivers are in such demand that nobody needs to tolerate exploitive behaviour from unscrupulous employers. On the other hand, don’t expect the best unless you are willing to give it your best.
Obviously adjusting to the Canadian driving scene is something that every UK driver is going to have to deal with. Don’t think that the big companies are the only ones who are willing to assist with the necessary retraining and familiarisation. I believe most small firms would be happy to invest the time and money in assisting good people with the transition. I know we certainly would expect that in our company. The problem that small companies like ours have is that we lack the network of contact that bring us and the potential work force from outside of Canada together. I recommend that anyone who is seriously interested in working in Canada come and meet with the small trucking firms in the more out of the way places. The internet is obviously a great tool as well.
I hope that this information may prove encouraging to those of you who are serious about a Canadian trucking career. For the right people, this could be a great opportunity with so many different rewards. Canada would benefit greatly by being the recipient of enterprising people of good character. That is, after all, what built this great country of ours.
I hope this letter doesn’t sound too preachy. Best of luck.
Hal
Do it all yourself for a fraction of the thousands those companies and the agencies are trying to prise from you.