Dramatic Jump in U.S. Poverty Rate Underscores Need for Employment Opportunities
Faced with an unprecedented increase in poverty, Americans everywhere seek better employment opportunities. Brad Ball, president of Roadmaster Drivers School, explains how trucking gives people access to a well-paid, employee-hungry industry.
CLEARWATER, Fla., July 27, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In 2020, due to the coronavirus's decimation of the labor market and the expiration of benefits from a government relief package, the percentage of U.S. citizens living at or below the poverty line surged from 9.3% in June to 11.7% in October—the largest increase in a single year since 1960, when the government began tracking poverty.(1) According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the poverty level represents an annual income of $12,880 for a single person, or $26,500 for a family of four.(2) "These figures highlight an urgent need for access to well-paid and stable employment. And trucking offers just that," says Brad Ball, President, Roadmaster Drivers School.
The need for access to better jobs is particularly evident in North Carolina, says Ball, noting that 13.6% of North Carolinians already lived in poverty in 2019.(3) In Dunn, a small city about 40 miles south of Raleigh, the poverty level is even higher, at 29.1%.(4) Employment in the area, he notes, has traditionally been dependent on the North Carolina logging industry, whose annual harvest has dropped about 17% in recent decades, and is being further depressed by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.(5)
Meanwhile, Ball points out, there is an acute national shortage of, and demand for, long-haul truck drivers, a profession that can be entered after a relatively brief training period and that does not require a college degree.(6) To help provide some of these drivers, the newly constructed, state-of-the-art Roadmaster school in Dunn offers a four-week class designed to provide both the hands-on training and classroom instruction necessary to properly and safely operate an 18-wheel semitrailer truck and obtain a Class A CDL license. Through the school's career services program, Ball adds, many students are hired into the industry even before they graduate.
On August 6, 2021, between the hours of 10:00 AM and 5:00 PM, members of the press, prospective students, and families and friends are warmly invited to the grand opening of the new Roadmaster school facility at 1000 South Clinton Avenue, Dunn, NC 28335.
As more central North Carolinians have become aware of the opportunity the industry offers, says Ball, Roadmaster realized that it needed more space in Dunn for students and more room for trucks, and has provided it.
"For career seekers, particularly high-school grads wanting to escape the rat race of fast foods and retail," says Ball, "trucking is opportunity on wheels. The average starting salary for truckers is around $50,000 a year." Additionally, Ball explains, employers who hire from Roadmaster reimburse the cost of tuition as an incentive for new drivers.
If the nation's current shortage of drivers continues to grow, it will adversely affect all sectors of our society since trucking is the lifeblood of our economy, explains Ball. "People who are unemployed and even underemployed would benefit immensely by becoming truck drivers while at the same time helping to keep our nation moving," Ball says.
About Roadmaster Drivers School:
Roadmaster, headquartered in St. Petersburg, FL, is a nationwide training organization for truckers. They have nearly 30 years of experience training more than 150,000 graduates with 16 training locations nationwide. By focusing on giving students the best education and maintaining high job placement standards, Roadmaster has gained a national reputation in the trucking industry for quality training of entry-level commercial truck drivers—noted for their training practices to be the most hands-on and safety-focused training in the country. For more information, visit http://www.roadmaster.com.
1. Beer, Tommy. "Largest Increase In U.S. Poverty Recorded In 2020." Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 29 June 2021, forbes.com/sites/tommybeer/2020/12/16/largest-increase-in-us-poverty-recorded-in-2020/?sh=3e64d27032bd.
2. "2021 Poverty Guidelines." ASPE, aspe.hhs.gov/topics/poverty-economic-mobility/poverty-guidelines/prior-hhs-poverty-guidelines-federal-register-references/2021-poverty-guidelines
3. "2020 Poverty Report: Persistent Poverty Demands a Just Recovery for North Carolinians." North Carolina Justice Center, ncjustice.org/publications/2020-poverty-report-persistent-poverty-demands-a-just-recovery-for-north-carolinians/.
4. "Quick Facts: Dunn City, North Carolina," U.S. Census Bureau, census.gov/quickfacts/dunncitynorthcarolina/
5. Parajuli, Rajan. "A Close Look at the North Carolina Logging Industry: Historical Trends and Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic." NC State Extension Publications, content.ces.ncsu.edu/a-close-look-at-the-north-carolina-logging-industry-historical-trends-and-impacts-of-the-covid-19-p.
6. Isidore, Chris. "Truckers Are Getting Big Pay Hikes, but There's Still a Shortage of Drivers." CNN, Cable News Network, 29 May 2021, cnn.com/2021/05/29/economy/truck-driver-shortage-pay-hikes/index.html.
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SOURCE Roadmaster Drivers School
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