Truckers’ Retirement: An Exhausting Journey to the End of the Road

In Spain, the debate over the retirement age for truck drivers has gained momentum, becoming the center of a controversy that pits current legislation against the demands of a sector that considers itself particularly hard-hit. Unlike the general retirement age, which is being progressively raised to 67, truck drivers can retire early, at 64, because their profession is classified as “arduous, toxic, dangerous, or unhealthy.” This regulation is primarily supported by Royal Decree 1698/2011, which implements the General Social Security Law, and recognizes the accumulated physical and mental wear and tear from a lifetime on the road.

However, various freight transport organizations, such as the National Federation of Freight Transport Associations (Fenadismer), argue that this concession is not enough. Their main demand is equal treatment with other similarly demanding trades, such as miners, who can retire at 60. Drivers argue that working conditions have worsened, with very long shifts, extremely tight delivery deadlines, permanent stress, and insufficient rest periods, which accelerates their physical deterioration and makes even 64 a distant and exhausting goal.

The catalog of ailments afflicting this group is eloquent testimony to its arduousness. Epidemiological studies point to a high incidence of chronic musculoskeletal disorders—lower back pain, herniated discs, and cervical problems—derived from long hours in the same posture and handling loads. To these are added cardiovascular diseases, associated with forced sedentarism and stress, and gastrointestinal disorders. “It’s a profession that literally wears you out from the inside and outside,” says Dr. Miguel Ángel Sánchez, a specialist in occupational medicine. “The combination of vibrations, constant noise, and the disruption of circadian rhythms creates a cocktail that is harmful to long-term health.”

But beyond physical ailments, a crucial question for road safety arises: Do truckers lose their ability to respond to the multiple dangers on the road? Experts in human factors warn about the cumulative impact of chronic fatigue. Professor Elena Rodríguez, a road safety researcher at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, explains it like this: “Fatigue is not just sleepiness. It is a progressive decrease in attention, a slowing down in decision-making, and a reduction in the ability to react to unforeseen events. A driver over 60 with decades of accumulated fatigue may see their cognitive and motor skills significantly reduced in high-risk situations.”

Faced with this panorama, sector organizations are not only asking for earlier retirement but also for an improvement in working conditions to delay the onset of these effects. Proposals such as optimizing loading and unloading times, installing more secure rest areas, and campaigns to monitor compliance with schedules aim to mitigate the daily wear and tear. They consider it a question of social justice and, above all, of safety for all road users.

In short, the issue of truckers’ retirement goes beyond a mere numerical debate about an age. It is a reflection of the extremely harsh conditions of a trade that sustains the economy but consumes those who practice it. Finding a balance between the sustainability of the pension system and the protection of essential workers, whose fatigue can become a public risk factor, is the pending challenge. The biological clock of thousands of drivers runs faster than the calendar, and the road, relentless, shows no mercy.