In a sign that the market is tightening for drivers, the turnover rate among truckload carriers surged in the second quarter of the year, according to recently published data from the American Trucking Association’s (ATA) Chief Economist Bob Costello.
In its quarterly report, ATA found that the turnover rate at large truckload carriers rose 16 percentage points to approximately 90 percent, the highest figure in more than two years. The 16 point increase was the largest single-quarter increase for turnover rates in almost seven years.
“We saw double-digit gains in the annualized turnover rate for both small and large truckload fleets,” Costello said. “After a period of relatively low turnover, it appears the driver market is tightening again, which coupled with increased demand for freight movement, could rapidly exacerbate the driver shortage.”
Among fleets with less than $30 million in annual revenue, also known as small carriers, the turnover rate saw an even greater surge, jumping by 19 percentage points to 85 percent.
However, the turnover rate among less-than-load (LTL) fleets were less clear. Over the road, LTL turnover rates dropped by one point to nine percent, but the local LTL driver rates sat at 14 percent, up two percentage points from the previous quarter.
“We predicted that last year’s period of relatively low and stable turnover could be short-lived if the freight economy recovered from 2016’s freight recession,” Costello said. “It appears those predictions were correct and we may be seeing the beginnings of a significant tightening of the driver market and acceleration of the driver shortage.”