Charity drives to help workers in the trucking industry are nothing new. Truckers get sick. Truckers become temporarily incapacitated. Carriers go bankrupt. Whatever the reason, unemployment benefits are not always enough to sustain truckers and their families until they get back on the road.

In some cases, it can be very difficult to get unemployment benefits as a trucker, depending on state law or if truckers are independent owner-operators doing business as 1099 employees. But through it all, charity drives like St. Christopher’s Trucker Development and Relief Fund have been there, and this year they are on track to receive record donations.

The Past Two Years Have Not Been Easy

2019 started with a lot of hope for the trucking industry. Then rates and demand started to drop. The robust end of 2018 turned out to be artificially induced by the threat of tariffs on imported goods. Once businesses overseas moved their operations to countries that weren’t impacted by the tariffs, demand fell, and shippers gained more leverage in setting rates.

As 2019 progressed, some carriers were forced to downsize their workforce, and others closed up shop completely. The truckers affected by the turn of events in 2019 looked to charity drives for financial assistance while they applied for new jobs.

2020 is not over yet, and we are still in the middle of a pandemic. While the trucking industry plays a foundational role in keeping our economy moving, rates are still low. Drivers are also getting sick from COVID-19. This combination is resulting in unemployment and medical bills, and truckers need assistance.

Charity Drives to the Rescue

Charity drives for truckers have been experiencing large donations from corporations, philanthropists, and other sources and are on track to achieve record levels in 2020. No matter where people fall politically, no one can deny the important role that the trucking industry plays in our everyday lives.

Citizens rely on truckers when they go to the grocery store. The healthcare sector relies on truckers for medical equipment. Manucaturers rely on truckers for raw materials and, again, to deliver finished goods to businesses and individual customers.

So if you can, donate or raise awareness about charities for truckers, because some drivers are depending on us as much as we depend on them.