Ever since the start of quarter 2, there has been a lot of new information and implementations thrown into our already crazy industry. Most recently, shippers, carriers, and brokers have had to battle the new enforcement of the English Language Proficiency expectations. In talking with several people in different sectors of the supply chain, the common question was “How will this impact the domestic market?”

In truth, no one really knows the extent of the impact that ELP enforcement could cause overall and how it would be enforced nationally. While some reports were saying closer to the 10-20% range, others have said closer to 40% of OTR drivers could be put OOS due to the new enforcement that started June 25th. With numbers being tossed out to this significance, shippers were trying to pull as much information as they could on how to combat this, how they can capture the data in which their loads are hauled within the ELP standard, and what carriers they work with are doing to ensure their freight is maintained at the service levels required.

With the July 4th holiday in the rear-view mirror, we will start to see how the market and capacity levels react to the ELP enforcement in the coming weeks. While there is no ‘one size fits all’ with the new implementation, the Allen Lund Company has prided itself on our longstanding relationships with our carriers, and the communication they continue to have with us to this day. The only way to combat new situations is an open line of communication and a work together attitude. Communication is the key to overcoming any obstacle that comes our way!