Last week’s monthly employment report offered a fresh perspective on the state of payroll employment in trucking and related industries. While some sectors showed gains, others continued to face challenges, painting a nuanced picture of the transportation job market as we head into 2025.
For-hire trucking employment levels have remained relatively stable over the past five months. In December, the sector shed just 800 payroll jobs, seasonally adjusted, according to preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This slight decline followed downward revisions of October and November estimates by a net of 2,000 jobs.
Since August, the net gain has been just 900 jobs, a stark contrast to the period between April and July, when trucking lost 11,400 jobs.
Breaking the data down further (as of November):
Looking ahead, the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) indicates that BLS may revise its trucking job estimates downward during its annual benchmark revision. Preliminary QCEW data suggests that, as of June, trucking jobs were overestimated by 41,000 positions, with general freight truckload accounting for more than half of this discrepancy.
Employment trends in related industries offered some positive notes:
While transportation-related employment trends reveal a mix of gains and challenges, the stability in certain segments and growth in areas like parcel delivery and warehousing offer optimism. As we approach the release of BLS’s annual benchmark revisions, adjustments to trucking job estimates may provide a clearer view of the sector’s health.
Stay tuned for further analysis on national payroll trends and their implications for the transportation industry.