CEO of a food wholesaler is saying he was turning down some candidates for trucker jobs. This is amid a labor shortage because unfortunately, they couldn’t pass drug tests.

CEO of Chef’s Warehouse

The CEO of Chef’s Warehouse, Chris Pappas, that’s responsible for providing ingredients to restaurants, he said was short about approximately 1,000 drivers. There are many candidates that are being turned away due to drug tests. This was a big enough number that is hurting, he said. However, he did not give more detail.

Vetting Truckers and the Rules

In 2020, the rules on vetting truckers were changing. Seventy-two thousand drivers were prohibited from work as of September. This was under the new driver Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse system. It is to record drug and alcohol violations. This is based on government data. Now, all employers and trucks are going to update their records. It would be annually. Then all employers must also consult the database before they do approve a new driver.

Then, in October, the American Trucking Association has estimated that the industry was short in the number of around 80,000 drivers. However, there are now concerns issues about staffing before the COVID-19 pandemic that has pushed people out of the workforce.

It seems that employees are mostly pleased with the new, and, stricter rules. However, the industry groups do say it has made it harder to enroll new drivers.

“We have lost really a mind-blowing number of drivers” that is because of these rules, Jeremy Reymer, the chief executive of industry recruiter DriverReach.

Hopping Between Jobs

Drivers that have tested positive were prior able to hop between jobs. This is what Steve Keppler, co-director of Scopelitis Transportation Consulting, has said. “Moreover, they would not be able to report their previous employer. That is so a carrier wouldn’t pick up on the positive test. The Clearinghouse has, in effect, stopped that from happening,” he said.