The Next Shift: How Next Gen Trucking Is Finding New Trucking Professionals

What’s missing from the trucking industry?

The engines are still running. The trailers are loaded. The routes are laid out. Everything should be hunky-dory, but there’s something…off…about the entire situation. 

Wait, we’ve got it: the people.

There’s…an emptiness.

There haven’t been enough repair technicians in the bays to keep up with demand for a while. There’s also a considerable shortage of new drivers, which is just as bad. Trucking overall has just not attracted the kind of attention other fields have, meaning that it’s not bringing in enough new people to make up for those who are retiring from the field. 

You can imagine what happens if the trucks don’t move: things slow down, then stall out entirely. Everything rides on the back of a truck at some point. Food arrives at grocery stores on a truck. Medicine reaches pharmacies on a truck. Everything you buy in a store or off Amazon was probably on a truck…so when the trucks stop moving, we all have a problem. 

Trucking needs more people. How can it get them?

That’s the problem Next Gen Trucking, known more formally as The Next Generation in Trucking Association, has set out to solve. Formed in 2021, they’re dedicated to promoting careers in the heavy-duty trucking field and changing the way people look at the industry (and possibly the way the industry looks at itself). They’ve even got a nationally registered apprenticeship program and are building on a (much-needed!) reefer tech apprenticeship. 

We’re big fans of heavy-duty trucking and anyone who’s trying to help it, so naturally we wanted to learn more about Next Gen Trucking. We were thrilled when co-founder and President Lindsey Trent graciously sat down with us to share more about the nonprofit’s mission and where it’s headed in the future.

An Industry That Touches Everything

Lindsey’s adventures in the heavy-duty field began over a decade ago, when she was working in driver staffing. “I fell in love with the industry,” she said, not just because of the people in it but because of how many things it impacts. Again, everything rides on a truck, including the phone or computer you’re reading this article on. It’s a field that makes a difference to a lot of people.

It was while working at Ryder that Lindsey learned about the diesel tech shortage and just how widespread it had become. The wheels began turning (if you’ll excuse the pun): how could the industry attract more talented young people to take the place of those who were or would be retiring? 

She eventually learned about a teacher in California who had started a trucking program, and the two worked together to create a nonprofit, industry-wide solution for the industry-wide problem of workforce shortages.

Next Gen Trucking’s Four Pillars 

Today, Next Gen Trucking is a small organization that does a lot with very little. The heart of their offerings is in their four strategic pillars: 

• They promote trucking careers. There’s no question the heavy-duty industry has something of an image problem. There are a lot of reasons for this, some of which we’ve detailed in other articles, but in short: people — especially younger people — don’t see heavy-duty as a viable, well-paying career. That’s why a good chunk of Next Gen Trucking’s efforts will be online; “70% of students and Gen Z are doing career exploration through social media,” Lindsey said. 
• They build and enhance training programs. Next Gen Trucking teams up with schools and industry leaders to start CDL programs, diesel tech programs, and supply chain programs. They will also help a school strengthen an existing program.
• They connect tomorrow’s workforce to today’s employers. The shops, dealerships, and companies hiring techs and drivers need to reach the youngsters who are looking for work. Next Gen Trucking brings the two together. 
• They celebrate achievements across trucking. Trucking is largely an unsung economic hero — you don’t notice something has gone wrong until a shipment doesn’t arrive. By highlighting the accomplishments of professionals and students, along with companies, Next Gen Trucking provides a public high-five for groups who might never otherwise receive them. 

How Do We Make the Industry Look Cool? 

The heart of the matter is that the trucking industry as a whole, as we mentioned, has something of an image problem. Here are just a few of the terms we’ve heard to describe it (er, terms we can print, that is; fill in the more colorful ones on your own). 

• Dirty
• Greasy
• Back-breaking
• Icky
• Dead-end 
• Unsafe
• Long hours 
• Pay? What pay?

And so on. You can see why people maybe aren’t lining up to become a technician or driver. A heck of a lot of the stereotypes you still hear kicked around were formed decades ago, when the field looked very different. The industry has changed a lot, but the rest of the world hasn’t actually realized that. Mostly because the industry hasn’t grabbed a trumpet and made an announcement. 

That’s part of what Next Gen Trucking is trying to change. 

“We try to sell trucking making a difference,” Lindsey said. “If we didn’t have trucks on the road and running, we wouldn’t have anything.” 

Trucking, in other words, contributes. 

To everything!

Speaking of contribution, that’s something that happens to be very important to an up-and-coming generation. 

Gen-Z Meets Diesel 

This is particularly important to Gen Z, which has been something of a mystery to shops. They are often described using words like “entitled”* or “glued to the phone.” In general, they don’t seem, on paper, to be the kind of people who are going to gravitate towards repair shops…except Gen Z is going to have to get involved in trucking if we want things to function with anything approaching regularity. 

Gen Z “wants to be part of a team,” Lindsey explained. “And they really want to have their voice heard.” A shop looking into hiring Gen Z techs needs to be ready to ask their opinions and include them in making decisions. But if they’re willing to do that, they will find themselves with hard workers who are more than willing to put in the hours and get the job done. 

More generally, those outside the industry don’t know that it’s not just spinning a greasy wrench around (although that does still happen). “The technology we have in trucking is amazing,” she said. “Making sure we’re showcasing all the tech they’ll have at their fingertips is huge.”

Another area where the trucking industry can show off? Care for the environment. Yes, heavy-duty vehicles have had a bad rap for a long time. The diesel emissions produced by modern units, though, are a far cry from what trucks were belching out in the 1950s and 1960s. In addition, we’ve got all kinds of new and alternative vehicles and fuels in the pipeline: electric, fuel cell, biodiesel, and all the rest. 

Want to Join the Next Shift? 

We’ve reached the part of the article where you go, “Huh, this nonprofit sounds great. How can I help?”

Well, at the moment, Next Gen Trucking is preparing to launch their “This Is Trucking” social media campaign. Remember, 70% of students and Gen Z are conducting their job and career research online. They want to see people out there doing the job they’re interested in — so think a 30-second, “day in the life” clip of a truck driver, diesel tech, and so on. If you’ve got a cell phone and don’t mind sharing a glance at your day with others, your contribution might just be featured.

Those who want to work directly with Next Gen Trucking can look into memberships for — they’re available for individuals, shops, schools, and more. You can also donate financially via their website.

The Diesel Road has Made All the Difference 

Next Gen Trucking might have been started to help the industry as a whole, but Lindsey quickly noticed the biggest impact wasn’t necessarily on shops: it was on people.

Students participating in NGT’s programs are often, for the first time, finding something they’re very good at. Decades ago, a student who was maybe not in love with academics might find a cool outlet in shop class. The dwindling number of shop classes — coupled with society’s generation-long swing toward four-year universities — has left many students who might otherwise be talented mechanics floundering.

When they join an NGT program, they often find something they can be passionate about and that can lead to a highly skilled, high income career. “The trucking industry has great careers,” Lindsey said. And connecting students to those careers can make all the difference.

“When we see a student’s life change and turn around,” she concludes, “that’s what it’s all about.” 

*Funny, people said the same thing about Millennials.