My recent maiden voyage captaining an 18-wheeler convinced me that truck driving should be a Red Seal occupation.

The Red Seal program sets national standards for skills and knowledge within a particular trade. There are currently 54 Red Seal occupations in Canada, including auto mechanic, cook, plumber, electrician, and heavy equipment operator. When these tradespersons complete their apprenticeship and pass a standard exam, they receive a Red Seal endorsement on their trade certificate.

The Red Seal program promotes excellence while instilling pride in the occupation — two intangibles that unfortunately seem to be eroding in the driving profession.

Apparently, Alberta agrees with me. The province announced an apprenticeship-style model for truck drivers that’s scheduled to be implemented in nine short months.

It’s a fantastic idea. But sadly, the reality of truck driving becoming recognized as a skilled trade across Canada feels a long way off.

I don’t do it often, but I dusted off my Rolodex and polled 77 respected industry pros on three yes-or-no questions about the driving profession. There was a lot of agreement — and one shocking surprise.

Lots of support

Question #1: Would you support an apprenticeship-style program recognizing truck driving as a skilled trade? The response was unanimous: 77 yeses. That’s good news. Ottawa insiders I spoke with emphatically told me that truck driving won’t be recognized as a skilled trade unless there’s overwhelming industry support.

Put this one in the win column.

Safer roads

Question #2: Would apprenticeships for truck drivers help make roads safer?

Another slam dunk. 100% of respondents said yes.

Truckers have a fiduciary responsibility to the public. If the industry’s “powers that be” can show Ottawa and provincial regulators that common occupational standards for truck drivers would make roads safer, maybe they’ll help pay for it.

Gig slowdown?

Question #3: Would an apprenticeship model significantly reduce the number of Driver Inc. carriers?
88% of respondents said no.

I was dead wrong about this.

I thought Red Seal-style standards would put a big dent in Driver Inc. Instead of showing drivers how to pass a test, they’d have to develop real pros to a national standard.

Established fleets have been paying those bills for years, developing their own professional drivers.
I figured the added cost of using accredited drivers would make it harder for Driver Inc. fleets to operate. Guess not!

No downside

Besides cost, no one offered a shred of downside to setting occupational standards for truck drivers.
More spoke about the upside.

Certification would attract higher-level candidates. There would be less turnover and more respect for the profession. Safer roads would reduce insurance costs.

It would help our industry’s brand.

If I still owned trucks, I would salivate at the notion of apprentices striving to be future Red Seal professional drivers flying my banner.

Fragmentation challenges

There’s been a lot of talk about apprenticeships for truck drivers over the years. What’s holding us back today?

One of my concerns is that our industry is more fragmented than ever.

Our changing demographics mean no one voice speaks for most of the trucking industry. Gig carriers represent a growing percentage of fleets, and I doubt they’d sign on to any initiative that would significantly increase their costs.

These are big obstacles when you need overwhelming industry support to have any chance in Ottawa.

White knight

The white knight in all of this could be the Professional Truck Training Alliance of Canada (PTTAC). The PTTAC is Canada’s only national group representing commercial truck driver training businesses. 

Its objective is to make truck driving a Red Seal trade in Canada. I applaud its efforts. They are off to a great start, and I wish them the best of luck. They have their work cut out for them. But it sure looks like a lot of people are cheering for them.