By Reagan Payne

Anyone in the trucking industry is no stranger to the truck driver turnover rate. According to the American Trucking Association (ATA), the annualized rate of driver turnover reached a high 98% in early 2018.

This high turnover rate can be attributed to a number of common factors: poor company communication, poor compensation, etc. Specific downfalls of the trucking industry, though, are the large spans of time spent away from home and unpredictability of paychecks.

Companies are well aware of this and are fighting tooth and nail to combat it and retain their own drivers. Tri-State Motor Transit is certainly aware of the driver shortage; however, this company seems to be in a place to offer a very different incentive.

Tri-State Bets on Itself

Already proud of his company’s pay rates, John Wilbur, CEO at Tri-State now offers a $5,000 bet on new drivers. All newly qualified trucker drivers will make more money in their first six months driving for Tri-State than they did in the past six months with their prior company. If not, Tri-State will pay them a $5,000 cash bonus.

"Our drivers are the best paid in the industry, and we're ready to prove it to new drivers. What do they have to lose?” asks Wilbur. “If new drivers don't make more money as promised, then I'll lose the bet. I hate to lose, but I'll honor my word and pay up."

While this is a hefty bet, truck drivers are notoriously underpaid; the problem is only getting worse. A Business Insider analysis showed that median wages for truck drivers have decreased by 21% on average since 1980. In some areas, they've declined as much as 50%.

Wilbur guarantees to put his money where his mouth is, but he may not have to. Tri-State’s top 200 employees averaged $74,584 annually.

Tri-State is a leader in specialized, high-security transportation, based in Glendale, Ariz., and operating a fleet in excess of 300 satellite-tracked trucks (mostly teams). It ships arms, ammunition, explosives, explosive waste, hazardous waste, low-level radiation, and other sensitive material in vans, flatbeds, Conestoga trailers, and dromedary (DROM) trains.

"Many of our Owner Operator Teams make more than $500,000 a year," Wilbur said. "Our HAZMAT Team Drivers do well, too. Our top driver made $101,287.36 last year. That's why I'm confident in my guarantee.”

Industry Impact

This is an exciting bet and will likely catch the eye of many in the industry, including other companies constantly competing for drivers. While it is exciting, especially for drivers looking to hop, it will only perpetuate one of the largest culprits of the industry’s turnover rate: sign-on bonuses.

This offer is not a “sign-on bonus” per se. However, it is a conditional sign-on bonus. Hopefully, this company will be able to retain these drivers with the promised pay improvement.

Reagan Payne is a staff writer for Wright Media. She can be reached at rpayne@wrightmediacorp.com