Freight hauler hiring 100 extra truckers to manage west coast port surge

As port congestion continues to slow the movement of freight through clogged U.S. west coast hubs, a California freight hauler is hiring 100 extra truckers to handle the boom in container volumes.

Third party logistics provider (3PL) GSC Logistics said today it is adding the truckers to expedite cargo diversions from congested ports to customers in the San Francisco Bay Area and Pacific Northwest. Oakland-based GSC transports containerized cargo from ports in Oakland, Seattle, and Tacoma.

The company said today it would bring in additional drivers by summer, boosting its driver pool by nearly 30%. Fifteen other positions would also be created to beef up departments like client service, driver dispatch, and information technology.

That expansion will help GSC handle an expected 25% jump in cargo volume in 2021, attributed to unprecedented U.S. demand for imports from Asia. “We’ve been in business for more than 30 years and the pace of growth is like nothing we’ve ever seen,” GSC Logistics founder and CEO Scott Taylor said in a release. “We’re taking some pretty dramatic steps to keep ahead of the demand.”

According to GSC, the trade boom results from unrelenting American consumer demand for imports and is expected to last at least through the second quarter. That surge is stressing supply chains, and has already caused ports in Long Beach and Oakland to report their busiest February ever for imports.

GSC said its aim is to quickly retrieve containers from West Coast ports overwhelmed by imports, getting cargo quickly out of ports buckling under the added volume.

“We’ve been coordinating closely with customers to ensure that expedited delivery requirements are prioritized and executed while there are many others who lack the visibility as they are waiting numerous days for their cargo,” GSC Logistics President Dave Arsenault said in a release. “The infrastructure and resource investments that we’re making are essential to maintain trade flow.”

GCS has arranged with marine terminals to isolate select importers’ freight as it’s discharged from ships. Company drivers then pull alongside and drive off with the first container in the stack, storing it at GSC freight yards until cargo owners submit delivery requests. According to GSC, that approach allows its customers to shape just-in-time delivery programs and mitigate the increased costs created by recent supply chain disruptions.