The Coca-Cola Company pledges $1 million to put more Georgia commercial truck drivers on the road

The Coca-Cola Company has announced a $1 million donation to the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) Foundation for its system’s Commercial Truck Driving Program. The company also announced “Delivering the Future: The Coca-Cola System & Technical College System of Georgia Truck Tour” to raise awareness of TCSG’s Commercial Truck Driving Program and career opportunities with local bottler Coca-Cola UNITED.

The Coca-Cola System & Technical College System of Georgia Truck Tour is scheduled for May.

“As residents and businesses across the state work to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever to invest in our communities and provide opportunities that will improve the lives of our fellow Georgians,” said Alfredo Rivera, president of The Coca-Cola Company’s North America Operating Unit. “We are proud of our Georgia roots and will continue to do our part to keep Georgia strong.”

During the truck tour in May, “The Coca-Cola truck will make stops in five communities across the state, including Savannah, Athens, Vidalia, Macon and Tifton,” said Gianetta Jones, Vice President and Chief People Officer, Coca-Cola UNITED. “In Georgia, we’re fortunate to be able to hire drivers from TCSG’s world-class Commercial Truck Driving Program. Our goal is to raise awareness of the program and trucking industry opportunities available right in our home state, most specifically the 85 open commercial driving opportunities currently available with Coca-Cola UNITED.” Complete tour details can be found at DeliveringTheFutureGA.com.

Impact on Georgia trucking

Businesses and consumers rely on Georgia’s trucking industry, which moves more than 435 million tons of goods across the state each year as the logistics and transportation hub of the Southeast (Georgia Department of Transportation, 2019). Today, this industry is facing challenges, having lost 6% of its workers nationally since the COVID-19 pandemic began, compounding an existing driver shortage that is expected to top 160,000 by 2028 (American Trucking Associations, 2019).

“Despite the challenges of the last two years, the trucking industry remained steadfast as a foundational driver of the nation’s economy, delivering essential goods to help businesses stay open and to reopen,” said Mark Rahiya, chief supply chain, technical and innovation officer, The Coca-Cola Company. “By supporting TCSG’s Commercial Truck Driving Program trainers and faculty, we’re making sure the next generation of drivers gets a world-class education while simultaneously working to address the driver shortage and provide opportunity for Georgians.”

More job training

The $1 million investment marks The Coca-Cola Company’s latest effort to help facilitate Georgia’s economic development and support critical job training and opportunities across its home state.

By creating 11 new full-time instructor roles and two part-time instructor roles, the investment supports TCSG’s greatest need, recruiting and retaining talented trainers. In addition, the donation supplements the $8.32 million of support from the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER II) that will provide facility upgrades, with the goal of doubling enrollment of commercial drivers across Georgia from 1,705 to 3,410 in 2023. Finally, this investment aims to ensure more drivers are in the pipeline to help fill trucking industry jobs with local Coca-Cola bottler Coca-Cola UNITED and other businesses across the state.

“We are grateful for our partnership with The Coca-Cola Company and Coca-Cola UNITED and look forward to leveraging this investment to attract more best-in-class trainers who are the foundation of our program,” said Greg Dozier, commissioner, Technical College System of Georgia. “With the expansion of the program, this investment will allow us to prepare more commercial truck drivers to enter the industry, helping to ensure the continued transport of goods upon which we rely across the state.”

The “Delivering the Future: The Coca-Cola System & Technical College System of Georgia Truck Tour” will make five stops from May 17 to May 26 and will offer entertainment, refreshments and activities along with the opportunity to learn about Coca-Cola UNITED job opportunities and TCSG’s Commercial Truck Driving Program enrollment process. Tour stops and dates include:

• Tuesday, May 17 – Southeastern Technical College, Vidalia Campus
• Wednesday, May 18 – Central Georgia Technical College, Macon Campus
• Thursday, May 19 – Savannah Technical College, Savannah Campus
• Wednesday, May 25 – Athens Technical College, Athens Campus
• Thursday, May 26 – Southern Regional Technical College, Tifton Campus

SC
MR