SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Mexican truck drivers working in the U.S. have reportedly received warnings for not having English literacy.
“I just got word one driver received a warning while driving in Texas last Tuesday,” said Alfonso Millán Chavez, delegate with Mexico’s National Chamber of Freight Transportation in Tijuana.
In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order bringing back previous mandates that were rolled back by the Obama administration, dictating all truck drivers in the U.S. must have enough English literacy to communicate with law enforcement and read traffic signs.
“We’d heard visas were being taken away too, but that is not accurate,” Millán Chavez said. “We do need to pay attention to these warnings, drivers could be put out of commission and their companies could face fines and other sanctions.”
He said his organization is working with the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana to establish an official line of communication to clarify doubts and questions mostly generated on social media by truckers.
He states of the drivers with B1 visas, authorized to drive from Mexico all the way to Canada, only 30 percent have English literacy.
“If they follow through as planned and start removing drivers who don’t speak enough English, this will lead to a collapse in the economy,” Millán Chavez said. “Currently there is a need for 56,000 truckers in Mexico, and about 200,000 in the United States, so cutting out truckers now in service would hurt the economies of both countries.”
He said his organization is not against Trump’s executive order, adding that it’s good that all drivers know enough English to communicate while on the job.
“We are in the process of organizing English courses for drivers who want to learn to avoid having any problems and maybe losing their visas.”
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