Trucking hit hard by April job losses

OTTAWA — If job losses were an Olympic sport, trucking would be a bronze medal winner for April’s competition.

According to preliminary figures released by Statistics Canada, April was the first month where service sector job losses outpaced those in the goods sector, and 3300 of them came from truck transportation.

Universities led the way with 6900 job losses, and food services and drinking took second place with 4100.

“This is a further indication that the trucking industry is still playing catch-up in terms of capacity reduction,” comments David Bradley, CEO of the Canadian Trucking Alliance. “For the past several months the reduction in freight volume has been outpacing the industry’s efforts to cut capacity.”

However, Bradley is optimistic “capacity will inevitably and eventually adjust to the market and when that time comes, some of the downward pressure on freight rates should abate.”

In the meantime, Bradley says the recent return to higher diesel prices will put additional pressure on carriers. “The softness, relatively speaking, in the diesel market had probably enabled some companies who were teetering on the edge to survive. However, with diesel costs climbing again, it may be tough for some of those companies to continue. Certainly, carriers will have to be disciplined in terms of fuel surcharges if they are to continue in business.”

Overall, total non-farm payroll employment fell by 51,400 in April, down 0.4 percent from March.

The provinces with the largest declines in non-farm payroll employment in April were Ontario, Alberta, B.C. and Manitoba. Employment in the other provinces was little changed in the month.
 


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