* Virginia - Driver turnover didn’t just drop in the first quarter, it plummeted
-- A year of driver pay hikes may have paid off for trucking companies. The number of drivers quitting one carrier and leaving for another — called driver turnover — dropped significantly in early 2015, according to the American Trucking Associations. However, it’s difficult to say exactly why more truck drivers decided to stick with their companies in the first quarter... Trucking companies, especially larger truckload carriers, have worked hard to raise driver pay over the past year, in some cases in multiple steps amounting to double-digit increases. Last year many of the largest carriers raised rates in the range of 10 to 15 percent, led by companies such as Swift Transportation and U.S. Xpress Enterprises. But motor carriers of all sizes and stripes have jumped on the bandwagon, often raising wages for drivers by length-of-haul and by job type, such as long-haul team or regional solo, and offering an array of incentives and bonuses... Swift raised pay again by an undisclosed amount May 1... BB&T Capital Markets estimates driver wages at the largest U.S. truckload carrier may have increased 5 to 8 percent. However, as pay rises, turnover declines, BB&T said. “We believe (Swift’s driver turnover rate) improved to 65 to 70 percent,” well below the industry average, BB&T said in a July 14 note to investors... BB&T told investors. “So whatever the wage cost, there was at least a partial offset. And long-term, being known for paying good drivers wages is a positive reputational benefit” ... More than that, with lower driver turnover and higher rates supporting higher wages, Swift has had the profit and incentive to add capacity for shipper customers. In the first quarter, the Phoenix-based company increased its truck capacity, as measured by JOC.com, 3.8 percent from the fourth quarter and 8.1 percent year-over-year, based on a “same-fleet” comparison... All this doesn’t spell an end to the endemic driver “shortage,” which many fleets define as a shortage of qualified, experienced drivers with good safety records...
Arlington, VA, USA - J.O.C., by William B. Cassidy - Jul 14, 2015
* New Jersey - US truckload carriers lure drivers with new trucks, technologies
-- In the struggle to hire and keep truck drivers, trucking companies increasingly are using new, highly sophisticated, fuel-efficient trucks with the latest safety technology as incentives... They’re also throwing in the latest “aftermarket” devices -- such as satellite televisions -- to make those drivers that do spend weeks on the road more comfortable on their journey... The result, these companies hope, will be more satisfied drivers who will stay with their employers, cutting turnover costs, and provide more sustainable, secure capacity to U.S. shippers... Last year saw a surge in new truck orders by carriers, as faster economic growth and higher profits fueled replacement of older vehicles. The number of active Class 8 tractors on U.S. highways will rise 5.8 percent this year, reaching 1.43 million, according to ACT Research... Many of those new Class 8 trucks are being designed with driver retention in mind... There's some evidence that trucking companies' retention plans, which include higher pay and benefits as well as more home time and better equipment, are starting to work. The American Trucking Associations today said driver turnover at large fleets dropped 12 percentage points to 84 percent in the first quarter, its lowest level since 2011...
(Photo: A Western Star truck up-to-dated cab) -- Newark, NJ, USA - J.O.C., by William B. Cassidy - Jul 14, 2015Labels: truckers' turnover, trucking industry news USA
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