The disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic have brought a new public awareness to one of Chattanooga’s key and growing industries.
With the delivery and costs of shipments now challenged in many industries, the importance of logistics and Chattanooga’s “freight alley” took on new urgency Friday in a meeting among education and industry leaders at Chattanooga State Community College.
“Certainly in my lifetime, the term “supply chain” was never the household phrase that it is now, and we’re all learning how that affects each of us,” Rebecca Ashford, president of Chattanooga State, told a conference Friday on logistics training. “I believe with the ups and downs we have in the supply chain and logistics, we will have a need for a strong workforce in this field for the foreseeable future.”
Last year, seven of the 11 fastest-growing companies on the Inc 5000 list in Chattanooga were in the transportation or logistics industry and most are still hiring this year. During a conference of trucking and logistics companies at Chattanooga State on Friday, most businesses said they continue to need more workers than they can hire in the current market.
“I could probably take on 20 more stores right now, but I just don’t have enough drivers to serve everyone,” said Cedric Hornbuckle, the terminal manager for Eagle Transportation in Chattanooga.