HERMON, Maine (NEWS CENTER) -- Workers in one of Maine's largest industries are afraid rising fuel costs could start to put people out of work.
Truckers are now paying up to $4.43 for a gallon of diesel fuel -- an expense the owner/operator truckers have to pay out of pocket.
"I know the last time...when the prices were so high, a lot of owner-operators had to quit because they couldn't afford it," said Carey Rudd, a trucker wtih Golden Ring Trucking.
"I look for that to happen again if it keeps on going up," said Rudd.
Because Rudd works for a larger company, he isn't directly impacted by the rising cost of fuel.
But truckers that own their own companies worry about it every day.
"It's a struggle, very much," said Sam Davenport, the owner and opeartor of Sam Davenport Trucking.
"But we always manage to get a living out of it somehow, but it's sometiems meager."
Davenport estimates he pays $400-$500 a day on diesel fuel, about half of his budget.
To keep business afloat, he is cutting back on personal spending.
For other truckers, it means cutting back on business expenses.
"It stopped us from buying another tractor," said Joshua Clark, a trucker with Willow Drive Farm in Winterport.
Clark said the farm has had to increase product prices to keep up with fuel prices.
"It makes you sick to your stomach when you drive up the pump," he said.
Truckers make up a sizable portion of Maine's workforce, with 1 out of every 16 jobs in the industry.
Truckers are worrying those employment numbers may start to go down as diesel prices go up.
NEWS CENTER