It is difficult for tow truck drivers to recruit workers. Why is there "more porridge and less monk"?
Experts suggest that measures such as technology competition and building a "home of love" should be adopted to enhance professional pride and sense of belonging
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The average monthly income is more than 10,000 yuan, and the peak season salary can exceed 20,000 yuan. However, it is difficult to hire tow truck drivers with such a high salary. What are the reasons?
The reporter's interview found that high barriers to entry, difficulty in attracting young people, and lack of professional belonging are problems to be solved in the industry.
"Brand new Shandeka G7 automatic transmission car, operating Fujian to Chaoshan line, the unit volume is stable, the monthly salary is 13,000 to 18,000 yuan, more work, more income, pay social security..." A report from a container transportation company in Xiamen, Fujian Recruitment information pops up from the "A2B2 Master Exchange Group".
In fact, in this WeChat group with 500 members and multiple sub-groups, recruitment information like this pops up every day, but few can get a response.
According to the statistics of the Xiamen Container Transport Association, there are currently about 8,900 in-service drivers engaged in sea container transportation in Xiamen Port, and the number of trailers is close to 10,000. The driver gap is about 1,000.
The current average monthly income of this type of work is between 12,000 yuan and 15,000 yuan, and the peak season salary exceeds 20,000 yuan.
Why can't we hire tow truck drivers with such a high salary?
Reporters conducted an investigation.
A2 certificate, I want to say that loving you is not easy
In a broad sense, trucks include all kinds of trucks, and in terms of permitted-driving models, they include heavy-duty and medium-duty trucks with B2 driving license, and heavy-duty and medium-duty full-trailers with A2 driving license. Tractors such as semi-trailer trucks and trains. Among them, the vehicle type driven by the tow truck driver is generally a heavy-duty semi-trailer tractor and requires an A2 driver's license to work.
In recent years, the state has continued to standardize and improve the management of vehicle overloads and overloads, and set up a nationally unified identification and punishment standard for overloading and overloading.
In 2016, the “Regulations on the Management of Over-limit Transport Vehicles on Highways” promulgated by the Ministry of Transport stipulated that the total weight of ordinary trucks (four-axle trucks) should not exceed 31 tons, while semi-trailer trucks (six-axle trucks) The total cargo volume does not exceed 49 tons. In order to improve transportation efficiency, many business owners will use semi-trailer tractors to replace ordinary trucks in the past.
At the same time, with the progress of the manufacturing industry and the continuous improvement of vehicle models, self-unloading semi-trailer tractors for transporting bulk cargo such as sand, coal, and grain have emerged. The transformation of road transport models has led to a violent demand for drivers with A2 certificates in the industry. increase.
The reporter learned from an interview that it is not so easy to obtain an A2 certificate as a barrier to entry for tow truck drivers.
According to laws and regulations, A2 permits cannot be directly applied for, and can only be obtained through two ways of increasing driving from the B permit or the C permit.
After obtaining the B certificate for more than 2 years, the driver can be increased to A2 certificate. Even if you can seamlessly participate in the increased driving test, it will take at least 3 years to obtain a professional qualification. If you start from the C certificate test, you can obtain the certificate for a full year After the driver is increased, it becomes a B certificate, and after another 2 years, the driver can be increased as an A2 certificate. It will take 4 years at the fastest.
This shows that it takes three or four years to obtain an A2 certificate and become a tow driver who can go on the road alone.
The reporter learned that it currently costs 5,000 to 8,000 yuan for an A2 certificate to increase driving in inland cities, and 10,000 to 13,000 yuan in coastal cities, and spending time to increase driving means less income, so many Although the driver has the willingness to increase driving, it is difficult to take action.
However, due to the small number of applicants, the relevant driving training business on the market is not perfect.
Age gap, young people stay away
"In our company, there are only two post-90s trailer drivers." said Zhang Hua (pseudonym), a post-90s trailer driver who has been driving for 7 years.
Wang Jinhua, who has been in the container transportation industry for 25 years, also expressed to reporters the distress of the age gap of tow truck drivers. He said that the company's main tow truck drivers are basically over 42 years old, and it is even more difficult to recruit a young man.
Data from Xiamen Port show that at present, the age of drivers engaged in shipping container transport in Xiamen Port is mainly between 35 and 55 years old. Drivers between 45 and 50 years old account for the largest proportion, followed by drivers between 40 and 45 years old, and drivers under 30 years old. The ratio is only 2.39%, and the problem of "aging" of tow truck drivers is serious.
The proportion of drivers aged between 50 and 55 dropped to 15.02%, while the proportion of drivers aged between 55 and 60 was only 4.44%. This also shows to a certain extent that most drivers are in the harder manual labor industry and most drivers are not yet 60 years old. Change career or give up the original job, but the new force has not topped it.
"I don't want to let my children continue to be engaged in this industry" "Work hard and run around"... During the interview, a driver expressed such emotions.
Zhang Hua said frankly that a series of practical problems such as long manual labor, no fixed working hours, high risk of accidents, and inability to take care of the family have also discouraged many young people from the profession.
In addition, industry insiders said that young people’s employment outlook, work and rest time allocation, etc. have undergone major changes, even if the income of tow truck drivers is higher than that of other manual workers, work intensity and environment, vehicle safety and comfort, etc. There have also been great improvements, and the industry’s attractiveness to young people is still not great.
Cultivate talents and enhance the sense of professional belonging
According to data from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, in the second quarter of 2021, among the 100 “most job shortages” in the country with more recruitment than job hunting, road freight truck drivers ranked 35th.
"In order to solve the problem of difficult recruitment of trailer drivers, the first thing to be solved is how to train talents that meet the needs of the industry quickly and with quality." Cai Dunhuang, deputy secretary general of the Xiamen Container Transport Association, suggested that the reform of professional driver training methods can be explored. , To replenish scarce talents as soon as possible, such as exploring the cooperation of industry associations, enterprises, driving schools, and technical schools to train talents, and lower the threshold of talent training.
Wang Jinhua agreed with this. He told reporters that it is particularly urgent to train talents for the container transportation industry. If the company can directly send talents through joint training, it will not only help solve difficult recruitment problems, but also benefit the healthy development of the entire industry.
The reporter found in a research report issued by the Xiamen Container Transport Association that those who have participated in vocational technical training and competitions, especially drivers who have achieved better rankings or have received commendations, have higher job stability and enthusiasm.
In this regard, Cai Dunhuang said: “Establishing special funds to support and encourage truck drivers, launching various activities to care for the driver group, creating a good working atmosphere, will also enhance their professional pride and sense of belonging.”
The reporter learned that the Xiamen Free Trade Zone Container Transport Enterprise Trade Union Federation, with the support of higher-level trade unions and logistics enterprises, has successively established four "Jika Posts" (trade union "homes of love") on and off the island to serve drivers.
At present, the fifth "Jika Station" is under preparation for construction in Haicang District, which can facilitate drivers to eat, drink, rest, handover documents, or wait to pick up and unload boxes. It is estimated that 300 vehicles will temporarily enter the site every day. It will serve nearly 10,000 drivers every month.
"This measure can meet the rest and catering needs of drivers. In addition, frequent labor law consultations, labor skills improvement, trade union policy publicity and other activities can enhance the sense of belonging of drivers. Only to protect the rights and interests of the driver group and improve the quality of service. In order to attract more talents to join the industry." Cai Dunhuang said.
Li Yimeng