WASHINGTON — The list of overwhelming data refuting a long-purported myth about a truck driver shortage continues to grow with a newly published report from the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association’s (OOIDA) Research Foundation.
Titled “The Churn: A Brief Look at the Roots of High Driver Turnover in U.S. Trucking,” the report takes on what OOIDA considers to be a dangerous, false narrative of a driver shortage that undercuts pay and hinders healthy industry growth. According to a statement released April 25 by OOIDA, churn and turnover are the problem — not a shortage of drivers.
The report notes that despite claims of a driver shortage from mega carriers and big trucking, the industry continues to see alarmingly high annual turnover rates, sometimes more than 90% at major truckload carriers. Established and accepted standards of a genuine labor shortage normally lead to wage increases and improved working conditions. However, trucking remains ensnared in a paradox where such market corrections are unable to overcome deeply rooted structural and economic factors, which fuels the churn.
Barriers to Getting out of the Trap
These factors continue to perpetuate high turnover in trucking:
- Extreme Competition: Intense competition prevents carriers from raising wages without risking business loss.
- Labor Supply Inflation: Industry and government initiatives continue to increase the labor pool, artificially suppressing wages.
- Regulatory Loopholes: The overtime exemption and misclassification practices suppress market wages.
- Limited Bargaining Power: Drivers, often fragmented and powerless, struggle to negotiate better conditions.
- Information Asymmetry: Many new drivers enter the industry under misconceptions about earnings and conditions, fueling the turnover cycle.
Getting Past the Barriers
“The report’s analysis concludes that more needs to be done to address the distorted, systemic reasons causing such high turnover in order for market forces to move toward a more sustainable balance,” OOIDA said. “OOIDA agrees and says the shortage myth does harm to the industry, highway safety and may prevent truck driving as a career from being a viable, desirable long-term occupation.”
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
I’d sooner opt to get shot dead, than to climb back into a truck.
I would rather die homeless under a bush somewhere, than climb back into a truck.
80% of truckers polled supported/voted Trump. That’s a whole lot of disgusting people concentrated in one industry! Why would I want to go back to something that attracts the worst of the worst people?
We are all glad your not driving.