Truck Drivers Losing Money from Recent HOS Changes, Fleet Leaders Say

ORLANDO, Fla. — Drivers are bearing the brunt of recent hours-of-service rule changes that constrict their hours and squeeze their paychecks, adding a new complication in the recruitment and retention battle, two carrier executives said.

 “There is no case where the driver isn’t being hurt,” Derek Leathers, president of Werner Enterprises, said at American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition here.

He explained that the July 1 rule change imposed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has cut productivity by 2% to 3% overall, and 6% among Werner’s team drivers.

Drivers are having to work longer and are struggling to match their pre-July 1 paychecks, he said. He particularly targeted the mandatory 30-minute rest break, saying it leads to frustration and could well increase accidents.

That outcome would be counter to FMCSA’s stated goal of reducing accidents and improving driver health, he said.

“[Drivers] have lost productivity,” said Steve Gordon, chief operating officer of Gordon Trucking in Pacific, Wash.

He said the changes have had a negative effect on his company, without specifying a percentage decline.

“It is costing our drivers money and it is certainly driving turnover higher,” he said.

Gordon and Leathers said drivers are leaving because of HOS. Werner found that since July, its corps of drivers who keep working as they approach retirement age has been cut in half because the new restrictions have cut their compensation.

ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello said a recent survey found that 44% of fleets believe the HOS changes have made it harder to find drivers.

Expanded coverage of driver issues will be included in the Oct. 28 print edition of Transport Topics.