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Federal trucking regulators have issued a three-month waiver that will allow truck drivers with commercial learner permits to operate during the COVID-19 emergency without a commercial licensed driver in the front seat of the cab, provided the CDL driver is in the truck.

UPS Inc. said it is taking steps to protect its employees from contracting the COVID-19 virus and that it reached an agreement with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters concerning paid-leave guidelines for unionized workers who are affected by it.

FedEx Corp. CEO Fred Smith said during a television appearance that he doesn’t expect his company to seek assistance from the federal government to survive the economic downturn being caused by the spread of COVID-19.

An updated guidance memo issued by the director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency clearly identifies truck drivers and related logistics personnel as “essential employees” helping the nation attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

UPS Inc. is joining a Trump administration effort to bring mobile coronavirus testing to several U.S. cities, the company announced March 16.

Amazon .com will hire 100,000 people — and give U.S. workers a $2-an-hour raise — in an effort to meet crushing demand from customers placing online orders for household essentials rather than going to crowded stores.

As they evaluate the implications of the coronavirus, some state trucking associations have adjusted the schedules of their truck driving championships.

For fleets, COVID-19 portends worse news in a freight market that already was slowing, executives said, as businesses urge their staff to work from home and consumers withdraw from daily activities.

Economists who closely follow the transportation and trucking industry say the next month will be critical as to whether the economy avoids a recession in 2020 as concerns over the spread of the coronavirus mount.