NWRA issued an Action Alert, urging members to contact their senators in support of the DRIVE-Safe Act. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) filed an amendment to remove the DRIVE-Safe Act from the bipartisan infrastructure package. The DRIVE-Safe Act is bipartisan legislation that would address the driver shortage facing many industries including waste and recycling. NWRA supported the DRIVE-Safe Act when it was first introduced in 2019. In the 116th Congress, the legislation received support from more than one-third of House and Senate members.
“The waste and recycling industry has experienced a growing labor shortage over the past several years, particularly when it comes to hiring individuals with a commercial driver’s license (CDL),” said NWRA President and CEO Darrell Smith. “We encourage our members to urge their senators to support this important legislation.”
Driving for the waste and recycling industry offers numerous advantages such as rising wages, a five-day work week, set daily work schedules and the ability to return home at the end of each day’s shift. Despite all this, the industry’s companies increasingly struggle to find enough CDL drivers.