THOMASVILLE, Ga. — Recently, Southern Regional Technical College Commercial Truck Driving (CDL) graduate Antonio Yates, Orgill, Inc.’s Human Resources Manager David Fant, and SRTC’s President Jim Glass made history by signing Georgia’s first commercial truck driving apprenticeship agreement. 

The purpose of this apprenticeship is to allow CDL graduates to begin working with trucking companies like Orgill, Inc. directly out of school, the college said in a press release. 

“Typically, new drivers must work as an over-the-road driver before they meet the experience requirements for local employment,” SRTC said. “SRTC’s CDL apprenticeship partnership with Orgill allowed Yates to go directly to work in his community, make a great salary, and to be home at night while he earns invaluable experience.”

For trucking companies, this kind of apprenticeship can help them bridge the driver shortage gap and hire talented drivers earlier in their careers. According to the American Trucking Association, 70 percent of the nation’s freight is carried by commercial trucks, and while demand is projected to increase over the next decade, the threat posed by the driver shortage stands to disrupt the continuity of the supply chain. 

According to a recent estimate, the trucking industry needs an additional 60,800 truck drivers immediately — a deficit that is expected to grow to more than 160,000 by 2028. In fact, when anticipated driver retirement numbers are combined with the expected growth in capacity, the trucking industry will need to hire roughly 1.1 million new drivers over the next decade, or an average of nearly 110,000 per year.

CDL Program Chair Kerrie Wilson said that SRTC is graduating 90 new drivers on average every year, and said the apprenticeship program will ensure that more of SRTC’s graduates will be able to begin their careers locally. 

“This groundbreaking partnership is a win-win-win for everyone involved and we are thrilled that this first apprenticeship partnership with Orgill, Inc. will not be the last!” Wilson said.

The growing apprenticeship program pairs technical instruction with related on-the-job training, building upon the workforce development relationship between SRTC and area business and industry partners. Prior to the CDL apprentice agreement with Orgill, Inc., the college established anautomotive apprenticeship agreement with Flowers Honda in Thomasville. Nationwide, employers retain apprenticeship completers as employees at a much higher rate than traditional hires, according to SRTC’s Special Assistant to the President Amy Carter.

For more information about the apprenticeship program at SRTC, please email amycarter@southernregional.edu.