Former ATA Chair Shorty Whittington Attends White House ‘Jobs Summit’

American Trucking Associations Immediate Past Chairman Charles “Shorty” Whittington is attending the White House’s economic forum Thursday, which is being billed as a “jobs summit.”

Whittington, president of Indiana-based Grammer Industries, joined fellow CEOs, small business owners, labor leaders and non-profit executives at the forum, being hosted by President Obama to hear ideas on how to continue growing the economy and put more Americans back to work.

Whittington, whose one-year term as ATA’s chairman ended in October, will participate in a session called Creating Jobs Through the Rebuilding of America’s Infrastructure.

“I am honored to be invited by the president to meet with other corporate executives and small business owners to review the status of the administration’s economic recovery program and the efforts to address America’s number one task: job creation,” he said.

“As a small business owner involved in agribusiness and transportation, I understand first-hand the need to put people back to work, especially in the rural communities of America. Creation of jobs in this sector is critical to our nation’s continued economic recovery and growth,” he said in a statement.

Whittington serves on the boards for the Indiana Motor Trucking Associations, the Agricultural & Food Transporters Conference, the National Tank Truck Carriers, and is active in other state trade associations.

Last month the October unemployment rate was reported at 10.2%, the highest since 1983, with about 15.7 million Americans out of work, the Associated Press reported. The Labor Department will release the November unemployment rate on Friday.