Why These Truck Drivers In CA Are Disappearing Amid The Holiday Rush: Report

While it is typically the busiest time of year for the Roadies trucking company, dozens of its trucks are sitting idle after a slew of Indian truckers lost their commercial drivers licenses, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Outside of family-run businesses, the tech sector, and medical fields, truck driving is one of the largest employers of Indians in California. But many Indian drivers say they’re now being unfairly scrutinized and targeted after a deadly crash led authorities to revoke thousands of commercial licenses held by migrant drivers.

In October, 21-year-old Jashanpreet Singh was accused of being under the influence of drugs while he was behind the wheel of a semitruck in a fiery accident that killed three people on a Southern California freeway. U.S. Homeland Security officials later confirmed that Singh was in the country illegally.

And in August, three more people were killed in Florida after an Indian driver with a license from California was accused of making an illegal U-turn, the Los Angeles Times reported.

In response, the Trump administration issued an emergency order halting commercial driver’s licensing for noncitizens in September.

Since then, California's Punjabi truckers have reported harassment, with some avoiding interstate routes, the Times reported.

As for the company, Roadies, Chief Executive Avninder Singh says he has doubled pay offerings, but still can't seem to recruit enough drivers for the holiday season.

“My trucks are sitting," he told the Times. “It has put my livelihood in danger.”

Read more from the Los Angeles Times: Why are California’s Indian truck drivers disappearing during the holiday rush?