Self-driving trucks won't solve driver shortage

Although there are still nearly 7,000 job openings for truck drivers, Annette de Groot, director of the Transport and Logistics Sector Institute (STL), expects that the biggest peak in the shortage is now behind us. "It doesn't get any bigger than this," she argues. The sector has been struggling with aging for years, but De Groot also sees hopeful developments. "The demographic shift will come around 2040. Until then, we have to see it through."

STL supports companies as well as job seekers, lateral entrants and existing staff. Last year, this led to thousands of new entrants and closer cooperation with schools and municipalities. In addition, the workforce is changing: the number of women in the sector is steadily rising, from 10% in 2014 to 13% today - and the number of female drivers is also increasing.

The focus is not only on attracting people, but more importantly on retaining them. "Retaining young people requires a different approach than in the past," De Groot said. That is why STL conducts intake interviews to properly guide new entrants to the right place.

Innovation is important, but according to De Groot, we should not hope too much for technological solutions such as self-driving trucks. "Those won't solve the personnel shortage. In the end, it's all about people. Large companies respond better to this with flexible forms of work, while smaller companies risk overburdening staff."