Let me ask you a couple questions GMAN, and I'm not trying to be sarcastic. When you started back in the day was turnover as high as it is now and did companies need recruiters?

When you think about it, what other blue collar industry needs recruiters? If the answers are no and no then it has to make you wonder.

 

There are other industries that draw from the same blue collar male pool that require you to be away for 2-3+ weeks like oil rigs and remote construction.

They pay significantly better than OTR. reading the WSJ the other day the starting wage for a greenhorn in oilfield labor in W Texas right now is $20/hr.

 

Money is probably the most important consideration for me. But I also want good health insurance and to be treated nicely. I'd probably pass on a job even if it paid a couple bucks more if magangment at that place was a jackhole. There are unquantifiable things that are worth giving up a few dollars on the hour. I want to live a long life and not die early of stress because the company is pushing drivers to cut corners, treating drivers like livestock, and not giving good benefits.

Most people probably spend the majority of their time at work. Why not have it be a good environment? It does not cost the company anything to set a good example and treat drivers with respect, honesty, and kindness.

 

I have done some research on this. People will not stay with a company strictly for the money (not just trucking). There have to be other considerations. If a worker has a high income and poor working conditions they are not going to stay with that company for very long. If the pay is high enough they may stick around for a longer period than a low paying job with poor working conditions. I have also seen people stay with a carrier where they are treated well even though the pay was less than they could command at another company.

 

Trucking as always had turnover. I think that it is the nature of the business. However, I don't think it was as great then as now. I started with a smaller company. I didn't see much turnover with drivers. My company didn't have anyone specifically assigned to recruit. I am sure some of the larger carriers were more active in their recruiting. The entire industry was somewhat different back then. We had some larger carriers but not like the mega carrier we see today. I know people in health-care who constantly need to recruit personnel, and these people are highly paid. There is quite a bit of movement within companies, although I don't think it is as great as trucking.

One major difference 30 years ago compared to today is that rates were regulated and if you look at rates of recent years, we did much better back then. Freight rates were deregulated in the 1980's. Since then increased competition has kept rates down and driver pay has also suffered. Most trucking companies back then were run by the founder who was usually a driver himself. That made a major difference. Many of the large carrier today are run by people who have never driven a truck. The work ethic is also different today. I believe we had a stronger work ethic 30 years ago.

As to your question about recruiters. Most any business of any size will need to recruit personnel. The larger the company the greater the need.

 

Correction: OTR has high turnover. At my outfit, we just put 2 men on...last time we hired was 2.5 years ago.

To put that in perspective: in 2.5 years, the typical coolie outfit has burned through it's entire fleet of drivers more than TWICE!!!

It's because there's an actual SHORTAGE...meaning, they simply can't find people with the right skills, education, and experience. There is no shortage in OTR trucking - just a lack of people willing to live on the job for fast-food money.

 

I can think of a thousand examples and you are absolutely right. Today at a SUBWAY, I had to all but go back there and make the sandwich myself.

OTR Trucking is no different. Pay per mile can be dressed up to look pretty good to a prospective Driver, as it did me. I would need to put forth a considerable effort in order to make any money. I have a great work ethic and it didn't bother me. But you're right, the majority don't make it, they go away and we never hear from them again for any number of reasons.

It didn't take long for me to realize that I love driving. In order to make any money I would need to figure out the system and learn to work with it. That was over four years ago. I'm still driving because I still love it. In fact, I really love it. The more miles I drive, the more I get to see and experience and I kick myself in the ass for not taking it up sooner.

I love it so much I go out of my way to learn all that I can about it. You complain about Drivers hanging out in the video lounge, etc. Me? Today, I logged 11 in the seat and now I'm out here online learning everything I can about the business because I'm going to be around for awhile.

I do my homework. I don't speculate; I learn.

I know why Drivers aren't paid overtime.

I know why my company will pay $35 for a tractor wash but they won't pay me to wash it.

I know how and why my company and both ends of the load exploit pay per mile.

I know what efficiency means in order to be succesfull.

I know how and why the incredible majority of inefficiencies are absorbed by pay per mile Drivers.

I know why 85% of the people who get into this business wake up one morning with a sore head and say "this sucks".

I know the trucking business is "confronted with many challenges" and, from my perspective, foremost among them is Driver compensation . . and . .

I know the freight will be moved.

 

ClassB. What you have described above are textbook coolie carrier operations. Sadly, that is just a small sampling. Most people would simply not believe and/or not be able to comprehend what these companies put these drivers through. It only gets worse. Much worse. Despicable comes to mind. Shameful...................

 

That and Healthcare is technically white collar above the LPN level. The lower jobs require less training and the pay is fairly low to boot. If a hospital/nursing home can't recruit people in those positions when literally dozens "graduate" (more like certify) from every vo-tech and comm. college around the country every semester then they are not PAYING enough or working conditions stink. Now as far as RN's go there has been a severe shortage of personnel in that area due to the reason lebron mentioned.

 

According to the ATA there is a driver shortage. We have a problem for finding people for the same reasons you listed above for health-care. I think that there is a shortage of people who are willing to work. I don't know of any fast food company where you can make $50,000/yr. Most fast food managers don't make that much money. It is easy to sit back and blame the company. Turnover costs money. It costs the carrier in recruitment costs and it costs drivers in somewhat lower pay due to the lost revenue. I think one problem we have is that some people want to start out at top pay without any skills or experience. The longer you stay in this business the higher pay you should be able to expect. When you switch jobs often you are not doing yourself any favors. It makes you appear to be unreliable and unwilling to work through problems. That doesn't look good to any employer, whether it in trucking or another industry. There are some carriers who seem to do a decent job in retaining drivers. ALL carriers have a more than desired turnover rate. There are some ways in which you can get driver pay up. Stick with your carrier for at least a year or two. That will reduce their turnover costs and give you an opportunity to hone your skills. Every time you change jobs you will lose 1-2 weeks income or more. Don't steal from your company. This is wide spread in the industry. Drivers steal fuel, accessories and equipment from their carriers. This also costs carriers money. If you see or know of a driver who is stealing from their carrier, call the company or police and turn them in. There is only so much money to go around. In truth, carriers only keep a small percentage of the money they turn for profit. When drivers fail to do their job, abandon their equipment, steal fuel or other items from the company they are lowering YOUR pay. These carriers must offset these costs in some manner.