I am willing to bet that you bought something over the weekend. Not a shocking assumption, right?

You are very likely to have participated in an exchange of goods or services for cash. Maybe it was your weekly grocery run to Kroger, gasoline for your vehicle or boat, possibly lunch after church on Sunday, maybe a few bottles of sunscreen before laying poolside on Saturday afternoon. First of all, thanks for stimulating the local economy. But secondly, let me ask you this: before, during, or after the purchase, did you ever stop to think about where those items came from or how they got there?

Did the bananas and bread magically replicate and restock themselves since the last time you stopped in? Does the fuel for your engines continuously replenish via an underground petroleum well? How is it that each time we step into a fast food restaurant there are fresh french fries ready for us to enjoy?

It’s not magic, it’s logistics! Everything you bought this weekend was produced, manufactured, and delivered. Grocery shelves are filled with items that are loaded onto a truck and driven to your local store. Although sometimes we are frustrated with semi-truck traffic on the roads, we really depend on them! That truck that’s slowing down your commute to work, could be carrying the milk you’ll purchase tomorrow. We need truck drivers and logistics is a great career field to consider!

Currently, there are thousands of job openings in Kentucky for those responsible for getting things from the warehouse to your doorstep. Ordered anything from Amazon lately? Each item we purchase requires forklift drivers, palletizers, supply chain planners, barge captains, truck drivers, and other logistics professionals to make it happen. And most of these jobs pay competitive salaries. A short-haul truck driver can expect to make in the neighborhood of $50,000 annually, plus an attractive benefits package. Longhaul truckers dedicated to less-desirable routes may double those earnings estimates.

Each of these vehicles that bring us our goods also needs to be serviced and repaired, making large engine mechanics another high-wage, in-demand career option. Though wages will start out at lower levels, good mechanics can expect to earn $25/hour or more.

Being centrally located to the eastern half of the US, Kentucky is a logistical dream. We’re a one-day drive, or less, to 65% of the nation’s population. This is why companies like UPS and Amazon have invested billions of dollars to expand their presence here. These jobs may look different during the next decade with the inception of autonomous vehicles and other technological advances, but they certainly aren’t going anywhere. Presently more than 60,000 Kentuckians are employed in transportation and distribution and that is anticipated to increase.

The path to getting into this career field is a relatively short one. Most truck driving films require only a CDL and a relatively little experience; less than a year in most cases. Most mechanic jobs require little post-secondary training and apprenticeships or on-the-job training exist to bring along the next generation of talent.

If you’re unsure of what your next career step is, maybe consider transportation, logistics, distribution, and warehousing. Our one-click, buy-it-now, always-available society makes these jobs worth consideration.

Learn more about Kentucky’s in-demand careers at ket.org/education and tencocareercenter.com/sectors.

Jeremy Faulkner