Transportation and warehouse workers are being increasingly offered paid time off, but there’s been a post-pandemic fall-off in offering retirement benefits and flexible schedules, according to online job marketplace ZipRecruiter’s 2024 Labor Market Outlook.

The report found that 20.2% of employers offered retirement benefits, a 5% reduction, year on year, with only 19.9% offering flexible schedules, a drop of 28% year on year. Less than a fifth (18.2%) offered paid time off, but that was an increase of 16% year on year.

The pressure to attract and retain labor has grown because of low unemployment and the fact that the transportation and warehousing sector has added the most jobs since the pandemic and over the past decade compared to other sectors. And within the sector, the warehousing & storage category has added the most jobs.

“The 2020s are reminiscent of the transformative Roaring Twenties in that transportation is once again at the forefront of innovation. Then, it was the technological leap from horse-drawn carriages to automobiles and tractors. “Now, it’s the leap from gas-powered, driver-operated cars and trucks to electric and autonomous ones,” said Julia Pollak, ZipRecruiter chief economist. “Both shifts have sweeping implications for the labor market and the country’s economic geography.”

Following the experience of supply chain disruptions during the pandemic, ZipRecruiter says, companies are proactively reinventing their logistics processes for greater efficiency, flexibility, and resilience. That means strategically positioning inventory closer to buyers or across multiple fulfillment centers, adopting advanced inventory management systems, diversifying transportation methods, automating last-mile deliveries, and delivering multi-channel fulfillment. Logistics support roles key to the transformation are among the fastest-growing on ZipRecruiter and are projected to grow 18% over the next decade — far faster than average.

In order to recruit and retain top talent, the report’s authors say, employers in the sector need to showcase modern fleets, and communicate investment in a modern and well-maintained fleet, as well as the use of advanced technology and fuel-efficient vehicles.

It’s also important to improve work-life balance for workers. Flexible scheduling and predictable routes can be highly attractive to potential hires.

Another tip is to emphasize the culture of safety in your company, because minimizing the risk of accidents or crime is crucial to recruiting new talent.

Developing reskilling programs is also a sound investment, as many workers in the transportation and warehousing sector fear job displacement through automation. ZipRecruiter advises establishing upskilling and reskilling programs that train workers on how to use and maintain new technologies, and provide opportunities for workers to transition from obsolete to emerging roles.

Finally, there appears to be a missed opportunity to recruit more women in the sector. The report found that the proportion of women in the transportation and warehousing workforce rapidly rose from 11% to 27% between 1972 and 2001, but they have not made further inroads since. The best ways to attract female talent are to create mentor programs, offer flexible working hours and highlight your commitment to safety, ZipRecruiter advises.

Most of these findings are based on ZipRecruiter internal data, Jan. 1, 2022 - Oct. 24, 2023. Others come from the ZipRecruiter quarterly Job Seeker Confidence Survey, based on an online sample, administered by Qualtrics on behalf of ZipRecruiter to 2,000+ job seekers between the 10th and 16th of the second month of each quarter and weighted to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey. Respondents may be employed, unemployed, or not currently in the labor force, but must reside in the United States and have indicated a desire to find a new job "in the next six months" to participate in the survey.