Recommendation: The Secretary of Labor should collaborate with the Secretary of Transportation to continue to convene key groups of stakeholders to gather information on potential workforce changes that may result from automated trucking as the technology evolves, including analyzing needed skills and identifying any information or data gaps, to allow the agencies to fully consider how to respond to any changes. These stakeholders could include, for example, representatives of other relevant federal agencies, technology developers, the trucking industry, organizations that represent truck drivers, truck driver training schools, state workforce agencies, and local workforce development boards. (Recommendation 1)

Agency: Department of Labor
Status: Open

Comments: DOL agreed with this recommendation. The agency noted several efforts that it said will help the agency assess and provide information on the potential workforce effects of evolving technologies, such as automated trucking. For example, DOL noted that the agency's employment projections incorporate expert interviews and other information to identify shifts in industry employment. DOL is also currently consulting with DOT to study these workforce effects, and agreed to consider what other information and stakeholder meetings remain necessary after that study-due in March 2019-is completed. Likewise, DOL agreed to share related information as the technology evolves, and the agency noted it currently publishes employment projections and other occupational information. While useful, these efforts alone will not allow DOL to sufficiently anticipate the future workforce effects of automated trucking. For instance, the broad employment projections do not provide estimates specifically for the long-haul truck drivers who could be affected by automated trucking first. Further, DOL's occupational information is based on surveys of current workers, so it does not include the skills future drivers will need as automated trucking evolves. Therefore, we continue to believe that convening stakeholders and sharing information about potential workforce effects in the future will position DOL to better understand and inform key stakeholders of these changes.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Transportation should collaborate with the Secretary of Labor to continue to convene key groups of stakeholders to gather information on potential workforce changes that may result from automated trucking as the technology evolves, including analyzing needed skills and identifying any information or data gaps, to allow the agencies to fully consider how to respond to any changes. These stakeholders could include, for example, representatives of other relevant federal agencies, technology developers, the trucking industry, organizations that represent truck drivers, truck driver training schools, state workforce agencies, and local workforce development boards. (Recommendation 2)

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: DOT agreed with this recommendation. We will monitor the agency's progress to address it.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Transportation should consult with the Secretary of Labor to further analyze the potential effects of automated trucking technology on drivers to inform potential workforce-related regulatory changes, such as the requirements to obtain a commercial driver's license or hours of service requirements (e.g., the maximum hours commercial truck drivers are permitted to work). This could include leveraging the analysis described by the Explanatory Statement accompanying the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 once it is complete, as well as information the department obtains from stakeholders as the technology evolves. (Recommendation 3)

Agency: Department of Transportation
Status: Open

Comments: DOT agreed with this recommendation. The agency noted two of its current efforts related to automated trucking technology, namely its October 2018 automated vehicles voluntary guidance, Preparing for the Future of Transportation: Automated Vehicles 3.0, and its Congressionally-directed research on the impact of automated vehicle technologies on the workforce.

Recommendation: The Secretary of Labor should consult with the Secretary of Transportation to share information with key stakeholders on the potential effects of automated trucking on the workforce as the technology evolves. These stakeholders could include, for example, representatives of other relevant federal agencies, technology developers, the trucking industry, organizations that represent truck drivers, truck driver training schools, state workforce agencies, and local workforce development boards. (Recommendation 4)

Agency: Department of Labor
Status: Open

Comments: DOL agreed with this recommendation. The agency noted several efforts that it said will help the agency assess and provide information on the potential workforce effects of evolving technologies, such as automated trucking. For example, DOL noted that the agency's employment projections incorporate expert interviews and other information to identify shifts in industry employment. DOL is also currently consulting with DOT to study these workforce effects, and agreed to consider what other information and stakeholder meetings remain necessary after that study-due in March 2019-is completed. Likewise, DOL agreed to share related information as the technology evolves, and the agency noted it currently publishes employment projections and other occupational information. While useful, these efforts alone will not allow DOL to sufficiently anticipate the future workforce effects of automated trucking. For instance, the broad employment projections do not provide estimates specifically for the long-haul truck drivers who could be affected by automated trucking first. Further, DOL's occupational information is based on surveys of current workers, so it does not include the skills future drivers will need as automated trucking evolves. Therefore, we continue to believe that convening stakeholders and sharing information about potential workforce effects in the future will position DOL to better understand and inform key stakeholders of these changes.