Taking on a new driver for your fleet comes at a steep price.
Depending on who you ask, the cost of hiring a truck driver can range from $2,000 to $15,000 per driver. A study from Upper Plains Transportation Institute found an $8,234 average cost per hire between 15 different companies, but that was also in 2001. If we account for inflation, that equals about $12,719 in 2021. You also have to look at other losses and the long-term effects of high turnover.
When you break everything down, the price of a new hire ends up being more costly than most realize. Here are the most important things to think about.
Calculating Your Cost Per Hire
You can figure out your average hiring cost per person by using the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)’s formula:
- Add up all of your recruiting and hiring costs during a specific period.
- Get the total number of hires you had within that period.
- Divide your recruiting costs by the number of hires. That’s your cost per hire.
Make sure you consider everything you spend on hiring and recruiting new drivers.
Costs of Hiring Can Vary By Industry
Take your specific industry into account, as well. A company hauling hazmat materials or other hazardous freight will need to provide more training than a company moving non-hazardous goods.
The True Price of Hiring vs. Retaining a Truck Driver
You might have an average cost for hiring each driver, but the price of taking on new truckers often is much higher than it seems. Besides hiring and training, you’ve also got:
- Recruiting costs
- The costs and losses of idle equipment
- Entry and exit
- Lost productivity
- Maintenance costs
- And more
Since driver turnover rates are high, it makes the overall hiring cost expensive. Each time a driver leaves, you have to start over with someone entirely new. And if you don’t have good recruiting and vetting processes in place, the cycle will just continue.
How to Reduce the Cost of Hiring New Drivers
Let’s look at some of the best ways to cut down your hiring costs.
Focus on Keeping Drivers Around
If you want to reduce costs, you should start with reducing turnover as much as possible. And that means focusing on retention. If you don’t keep drivers, you keep paying the (often astronomical) costs of hiring, training, and making up for empty seats.
Keep drivers happy, and they’re much more likely to stick around. You need to think both short- and long-term. If you aren’t sure what drivers need, ask them. That might include strategies like conducting surveys to find out what keeps drivers from staying with you. You might also consider leadership training courses so that supervisors and managers can help improve retention.
Learn more about the best ways to retain truck drivers here.
Improve Your Recruiting Methods
Besides increasing retention rates, you can save a lot over time by getting a handle on your recruiting process. You probably know by now that the competition is stiff, so you need a way to stand out.
At AMG Driver Recruitment, we’re proactive in helping you attract the types of drivers you want for your team — often before they’re even looking. We use a combination of active and passive recruiting methods and emphasize direct leads to get drivers reaching out to you first. You’ll stay at the forefront of their minds. When they decide the other guy isn’t cutting it, they’ll think of your company’s name.
For help with your recruiting efforts (which includes reducing cost per hire), contact AMG Driver Recruitment today.