ATA: Truckload driver turnover remains high in Q4

Turnover rates at both small and large truckload fleets was over 90% for the full year in 2014, according to recent figures from the American Trucking Associations.    Driver turnover rates at large truckload fleets fell one percentage point to an annualized rate of 96 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014, and turnover at smaller truckload carriers – those with less than $30 million in annual revenue – rose one percentage point to a rate of 95 percent, according to a statement from Bob Costello, chief economist at the American Trucking Associations.
   Turnover rates are considered a general barometer of the truck driver shortage, and Costello said the fourth quarter and full year numbers for 2014 show the driver shortage is getting worse.
   Driver turnover at large truckload companies was 95 percent for the full year in 2014, a one percentage point decrease from 2013, but turnover at small fleets increased 11 points to 90 percent compared to the previous year. Costello noted the five-percentage-point difference between turnover rates at small and large carriers is the smallest since 2000.
    “We’re seeing the turnover gap between small and large carriers narrow to levels we haven’t experienced in some time,” said Costello. “This is likely the result of larger fleets raising pay, offering bonuses and attracting more and more drivers from smaller fleets to fill seats.
   “These figures show us that the driver shortage – which we now estimate to be between 35,000 to 40,000 drivers – is getting more pervasive in the truckload sector,” Costello said. “Due to growing freight volumes, regulatory pressures and normal attrition, we expect the problem to get worse in the near term as the industry works to find solutions to the shortage.”
   By comparison, less-than-truckload fleets had a turnover rate of 10 percent in the fourth quarter, down from 13 percent in Q3, and 11 percent for the full year in 2014, the same as the previous year.