American Transportation Research reports trucking operating costs = $1.855 per mile, a 12.7% year-over-year increase only slightly offset by a 14.8% decrease in deadhead mileage
Trucking companies hired about 73,000 new workers in the 12 months ended in July. In a time of shortage, how did they do that? Econ 101 says — “simply pay more money”:
- In-house fleets managed by companies like Walmart Inc., Sysco Corp., and PepsiCo Inc., driver wages reached about $69,700 last year, up 11% from the previous year. Add to those fringes, and you see the issues. And it is not just over-the-road full truckload carriers — Old Dominion Freight Line Inc. says salaries, wages, and benefits increased nearly 20% in the year's first half from the year-earlier period.
- The average referral bonus hit $1,150, up $150 from the previous survey