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Title:Predicting and Classifying Voluntary Turnover Decisions for Truckload Drivers
Authors:Gene Griffin and Lynn Kalnbach
University:North Dakota State University
Publication Date:Dec 2002
Report #:MPC-02-135
Project #:MPC-205
TRID #:00939326
Keywords:commercial vehicle operations, decision making, forecasting, motor carriers, organizations, surveys, truck drivers, trucking, turnover
Type:Research Report – MPC Publications

Abstract

Voluntary turnover rates among truckload carriers are extremely high, ranging from 50 to more than 100 percent annually. These high turnover rates result in elevated costs for carriers in terms of recruitment and training as well as costs associated with reduced productivity and decreased customer satisfaction resulting from inexperienced drivers. Although much research has been conducted to determine the relationship between job satisfaction of drivers and the likelihood of them leaving or intending to leave an organization, research addressing other reasons why drivers leave their organizations has been lacking. As a result, this project was designed to increase understanding of voluntary turnover of drivers.

To accomplish this objective, written surveys were used to gather data from drivers. Surveys were completed by drivers at two different times during the study. The first survey, assessing personal and situational characteristics, was completed by applicants for the job of driver during the hiring process. The second survey was distributed only to those drivers who quit their jobs during the study in order to ascertain how they made their decisions to leave their organizations. Although the actual number of drivers that completed both surveys was very small, analyses were conducted to determine how those that left the organization compared to those who stayed with the organization. Results and recommendations are provided in subsequent sections of this report.

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