Employment in trucking increases slightly in July; inflation up 1%

Trucking employment increased slightly in July, while the transportation sector as a whole also experienced a relatively modest increase.

According to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, approximately 3,500 trucking jobs were added to the economy in July. With the exception of a minor decrease in March, July’s employment increase keeps together a mostly two-year streak of job improvements in the subsector.

Compared to the rest of the year, July’s trucking employment increase was low. Revised numbers show an increase of nearly 7,000 jobs in June, 16,000 jobs in May and 15,000 in April.

Year to date, trucking employment is up by more than 56,000 jobs.

Accounting for all transportation sector jobs, employment is up nearly 21,000 jobs. The transportation sector also is maintaining a two-year growth streak.

Air transport employment experienced the largest growth with 7,000 more jobs, followed by support activities for transportation (6,000 jobs) and transit/ground passenger transportation (4,500).

Employment for couriers/messengers and warehousing/storage each dropped by about 1,500 jobs.

Based on revised numbers, employment in the transportation sector grew by 21,000 in June, 38,000 in May and 49,000 in April.

For the year, transportation employment has increased by 260,000 jobs.

Wages continue to increase, albeit slightly. Average hourly and weekly earnings of all employees in the transportation and warehousing sector increased by 8 cents to $28.04. Accounting for only production and nonsupervisory employees, average weekly earnings increased from $990.74 to $991.49.

Across all industries, more than half a million jobs were added to the economy, sending the unemployment down to 3.5%, which is where the nation sat on February 2020, the month before the pandemic disrupted economies nationally and globally.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Consumer Price Index has jumped by more than 9% over the last 12 months. The 1.3% monthly increase in June was broad-based, with the indexes for shelter, gasoline, and food being the largest contributors. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.7% in June. LL