{"id":1217,"date":"2020-11-11T22:23:28","date_gmt":"2020-11-11T22:23:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hiremaster.com\/trucking-news\/?p=1217"},"modified":"2020-11-13T20:58:15","modified_gmt":"2020-11-13T20:58:15","slug":"u-s-xpress-cargo-amp-up-incentives-for-drivers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hiremaster.com\/trucking-news\/other-news\/2020\/11\/11\/u-s-xpress-cargo-amp-up-incentives-for-drivers\/1217\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Xpress, Cargo Amp Up Incentives for Drivers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Reagan Payne<\/strong>

Truck drivers are in high demand these days and the only thing more important than getting them is keeping them. That\u2019s why companies like U.S. Xpress and Cargo Transporters are amping up their incentives to retain their own employees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This industry has one of the highest turnover rates of any employee group. According to the American Trucking Associations, the turnover rate has reached an annualized figure of 96%<\/a>. When you consider the obvious and urgent need for drivers, this figure becomes a lot more frightening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drivers are often incentivized to leave one company for another for better compensation, less time away from home, a lack of consistent communication, and the unpredictability of their paychecks when being paid by the mile. In addition to these factors, sign-on bonuses<\/a> perpetuate this problem as drivers hop from carrier to carrier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith truck tonnage expected to grow more than 31 percent over the next decade, attracting and retaining talent in the trucking industry remains critical to meeting the freight demands of our expanding economy,\u201d Chris Spear, CEO of American Trucking Associations, said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Cargo Transporters, Inc. <\/a>is taking the most mainstream and simple measure: raising the pay. By increasing the cents made per mile and calculating pay based on Practical Route miles instead of industry-standard Household Good (HHG) shortest miles used by most trucking companies, Cargo Transporters will increase pay by an additional 5 cents per mile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur drivers, deemed essential like the 3.2 million others that share the road each week, continue to push our economy forward. We are excited the company is able to invest in these essential workers by providing this pay increase,\u201d Cargo Transporters president and CEO Dennis Dellinger said. \u201cWe are committed to attracting and retaining the best drivers in the industry<\/a> to complement our culture at Cargo Transporters.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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While U.S. Xpress<\/a> does not plan to increase pay, it will lighten the load of living expenses for its college-going or child-rearing employees. Two years ago, the company debuted a tuition assistance program that just celebrated its first graduate. The Full Ride program offers free online college tuition for drivers, technicians, and up to two dependents through online classes with Ashford University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe really wanted to develop a program that helps provide some stickiness for those drivers<\/a>, where we can attract and retain them and keep them a little bit more long term,\u201d Amanda Thompson, the chief people officer with U.S. Xpress, said. \u201cAll of these employees are working full time and they are able to take classes online and work at their own schedule and pace. Employees will be able to obtain that degree for themselves and their children debt-free.\u201d

As a result, the company has seen positive responses in employee morale and engagement with this program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both Cargo\nTransporters, Inc. and U.S. Xpress are following suit with the industry in\nplacing technology at the core of operations. \nAlong with competitive pay, Cargo Transporters provides late model\nequipment and invests heavily in enhancing driver comfort and convenience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. Xpress is making strides from its partnership with Massachusetts Institute of Technology\u2019s (MIT) Center for Transportation & Logistics. The two are coming together to develop a roadmap to improve driver efficiency. This move comes as no surprise as U.S. Xpress already has made impacts on trucker technology. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In 2019, U.S. Xpress introduced Variant<\/a>, a new carrier brand built on technology. This company has improved efficiency by developing parking locators that reduce wasted miles finding open parking spaces; telematics, geo-fencing, and GPS tracking to route tractors to service facilities; and predictive analytics that bring tractors in for service before service failures occur over-the-road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cImproving driver efficiency can ultimately enhance the driver experience and generate more value for our shipping partners,” U.S. Xpress President and CEO Eric Fuller said.

Reagan Payne is a staff writer for Wright Media. She can be reached at <\/em>rpayne@wrightmediacorp.com<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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