Posted on 02/11/2008 5:33:39 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
A conspicuous shortage of truck drivers is creating a Catch-22 of sorts for the trucking industry, according to recent comments by carrier executives.
On the one hand, a lack of drivers is restricting the ability of trucking companies to expand and meet current freight volumes. Yet that same lack of drivers results in tight capacity, which is allowing fleets in many cases to get higher rates from customers and reject unprofitable business.
"Our results for the quarter were assisted by a favorable relationship between freight demand and truckload capacity," said Steve Russell, chairman & CEO of Indianapolis-based truckload carrier Celadon Group.
"We believe capacity growth in our industry continues to be constrained by a shortage of qualified drivers," he continued. "Assuming a continuation of the current freight environment, where growth in freight demand has exceeded increases in truckload capacity, we believe there will be opportunities to continue to raise freight rates faster than cost increases. Consequently, we continue to be confident in our ability to move to a 90% operating ratio or better."
"A solid U.S. economy and a favorable relationship between shipping demand and truckload capacity contributed to a 5.9% increase in our average revenue per loaded mile," noted Kevin Knight, chairman & CEO of Phoenix-based Knight Transportation.
"Solid productivity, improved fuel surcharge collection, and constant focus on expense control more than overcame cost increases relating to higher prices of revenue equipment, higher diesel fuel prices, declining fuel efficiency due to emissions control regulations, and increases in driver compensation," he added.
"Customer demand for our services continued to be strong," said Randolph "Randy" Marten, chairman and president of Mondovi, WI-based refrigerated carrier Marten Transport. "The combination of solid freight demand with limited industry-wide capacity and strong freight selection by our sales and operations team contributed to a 6.6% increase in our average freight revenue per total mile."
Still, the growing lack of drivers is causing fleets a variety of headaches - especially in terms of the bottom-line impact.
"The limited availability of experienced drivers continues to challenge the trucking industry," said Russ Gerdin, chairman & CEO of Coralville, IA-based Heartland Express. "We recently announced a driver pay increasa result our most senior and experienced company drivers will be earning 50 cents per mile while our owner-operators will be earning a base rate of 95 cents per mile by the end of 2006."
Marten Transport reached even deeper into its wallet to try and shore up its driver base by making a big equipment purchase at the end of 2005.
"After evaluating our expectations for customer demand, the continued attrition of owner-operators from our industry and our ability to attract and retain company drivers, we decided to take delivery of 246 tractors during the fourth quarter last year, more than half of the increase for the entire year," said Randy Marten. "But we believe that continuing to increase our capacity is important to major customers, and we wanted to make sure that we were prepared to grow with our customers in 2006."
"The driver recruiting and retention market remains more challenging than ever," said Clarence Werner, chairman, president & CEO of Omaha, NE-based Werner Enterprises. "The supply of qualified truck drivers continues to be constrained due to alternative jobs to truck driving that are available in today's economy. Yet we believe that a solid freight shipping market.. combined with extremely tight truck capacity is [maintaining] a strong freight market."
For more information on this publication, or to subscribe to the print edition, visit http://www.fleetowner.com.
You don’t have to rely on the companies. A lot of private technical education centers and community colleges also offer CDL training. But whatever route you take (company-paid or private training), you are not going to make big bucks starting out. You’re going to have to pay your dues for a year or two until you get more experience behind the wheel. Nobody - in any profession - is going to just give you big bucks right out of the block. Never have, never will.
Referring to fuel or Diesel as "gas" will get you ragged on by an old school trucker. ;-)
I’m not afraid to answer. I said, when you’re “stuck in one of those notorious Iowa traffic jams, you’re not getting paid anything.”
Not getting paid anything is the same as getting paid ZERO. That’s my answer and I’m sticking to it.
That is more than a little misleading. Heartland pays 50 cents per mile in specific areas only (east coast runs are one such area).
In addition, it is nearly impossible to average 55 mph due to traffic, stopping and starting, etc.. That also fails to take into account the layover time, waiting time and other variables that count against driving time. Some companies do offer layover pay, but that is generally paid only after you’ve “donated: two hours to the company. Even then, the pay is minimal.
Those guys all but gone. Most figured out the industry is a rip off, offering low wage, no life positions, to those that are desperate.
Again, if it were a decent job, not dangerous, with good pay and benefits, there would NOT be driver shortages as there has been for *years* now.
Now that, I’ll believe. Some areas should get paid more per mile than others. I-80 through Iowa and Nebraska is pretty smooth running. Sometimes the hardest part there is just staying awake.
Or just staying alive....While driving on ice, through blizzards, ice storms, and foggy conditions, amongst the drunks and idiots.
DOT regulations prohibit driving for more than 11 hours per day. You cannot legally work for more than 14 hours in a day (including your driving time) and you must show 1/2 hour (on-duty) for DOT mandated truck inspections (15 minutes prior to starting the day and 15 minutes after ending the day). You must show 10 hours of off duty time and you cannot log more than 70 hours of on-duty time in 8 days. To start the logs over, you must show 34 consecutive hours of off-duty time.
$35,000 per year is crap, but it is probably the average wage for most truckers. Few companies pay much more than that - and in most cases you’ll be gone from home for weeks at a time.
Schneider is one of the least desirable companies to pull for - I know of no serious driver who would even begin to consider them (the same goes for JB Hunt and most of the other big companies). Their trucks are governed and Qualcomm monitors your every movement.
Lastly - most truck stops are dumps; they’re usually full and a good place to have your fuel siphoned (if you don’t have locking caps). I avoid them like the plague. The food is better than it was in previous years, but it still leaves a lot to be desired - and it’s generally expensive (they’ve got a captive audience).
Topping it all off, most companies do not pay actual miles; they normally pay mapped miles and some pay what I call “crow miles” - where the miles paid appear to be as the crow would fly.
Yeup. I have Hazmat. Quite a hassle. Do I get paid more? Nope.
In most cases that simply is not the case. Most shippers couldn’t care less if you’re there for two days - they have no money out of their pocket.
Some companies do have contracted rates for delay times, but even those rates allow for 2 hours of delay time prior to paying the driver anything at all. Even then, the driver normally gets minimal pay (usually 12-15 per hour). In years past, you could log this time as time spent sleeping - but it no longer works that way: you must show a consecutive 8 hours of bunk time prior to moving the truck and then you must show an additional 2 hours before the 24 hour period is up (gotta have 10 hours of off-time in each 24 hour period).
JB Hunt, Swift, Schneider, Werner - all of them pay crap. None of the bigger companies pay worth a darn.
The only way to make good money is a smaller firm, with un-governed trucks and a loose interpretation of the logs.
You cannot make decent money driving legal. I know - I’ve driven for over 20 years.
Schneider, party of five, your shower is ready...
From what I’ve seen over the years, Schneider National has some of the best drivers on the road.
Our community college offers CDL training. Does yours?
Same here. It doesn’t pay anything extra at all - but you do get all of the added hassles. I’m one of the luckier ones: I haul propane and am home most nights (after a 15-16 hour day). While I don’t have to wait to be unloaded, I do end up waiting (at the refinery) to get loaded.
It certainly isn’t the glamorous - see the scenery - type of job the recruiters speak of; you’re too busy watching for idiots to really notice the scenery.
Good thread going here. I started driving for Sam Tanksley in 1978. Reefer. You might make some money if you could get a load of strawberrys to Hunts point New York. And get mob lumpers to unload you. And then get the hell out of there alive.
“The chances of my landing a new full time job are slim. Meanwhile, I have a wife and two teenage boys. At 57 few “entry level” positions are in my reach. It’s humbling. Never thought I’d be in this position. But, a lot of us “boomers” find ourselves here.”
Good Lord, you sound like me. Got laid off in May along with a bunch of other “old folks” and haven’t been able to get a decent job since. I’m 57 and am working part-time for a contractor in the place where I used to be in charge. I’m working with another guy who’s in the same predicament. It sure puts you through some mental changes doesn’t it?
Were I you, I’d avoid the OTR jobs like the plague: you won’t make good money for several years and you won’t ever see your family.
If you’d really like to get into trucking, see if you can’t get your CDL through your local community college and try to get on with a local freight hauler. Those jobs usually pay by the hour and you’re home every night.
Other options would include some tanker work. Companies like Air Products (hauling nitrogen and the like) typically don’t have over night runs.
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