• External recruiting includes job fairs, internet recruiting and classified advertisements.
• When recruiting externally, focus on people not traditionally in trucking in large numbers such as women, younger drivers, people of color, and military veterans.
• External recruiting may also include footing the bill for a person’s education at a commercial driving or technical school, and then continuing that education in the cab with one of the senior drivers.

There are a variety of available resources to find qualified driver candidates outside of the company as well.

Use these recruiting avenues individually or use several at the same time as part of an integrated driver recruiting system:

• Job fairs;
• Internet recruiting including social media;
• Classified advertisements in newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and on radio and television;
• Apprenticeships with driving schools
• Focus on people not traditionally in trucking in large numbers, such as:
  • Women;
  • Younger drivers (average age of truck drivers is over 50 years old across the industry);
  • People of color or who have immigrated to or are working legally in the United States; and
  • Military veterans.

Driver churn

Consider where the company’s current driver-hires are coming from. Some carriers spend an exorbitant amount of time and money recruiting and hiring drivers who worked at Company A. Company A in turn, hires drivers away from Company B. Company B turns around and hires drivers that used to work for Company A.

While the industry as a whole works on improving its appeal to potential new workers, and driving schools recruit with promises of rewarding careers, it is important to tap into a potential employee pool of people outside the industry.

So how do employers find and attract new drivers and turn them into driving superstars? The answer may be through the development of a driver apprenticeship program. While large trucking companies have had success implementing their own driving schools and training programs, companies can also benefit from training their own drivers from scratch on a smaller scale.

In trucking, this will probably involve footing the bill for a person’s education at a commercial driving or technical school, and then continuing that education in the cab with one of the senior drivers. While an employee could be brought in without any formal education, a good quality driving school will provide a solid skill base which enables apprentice drivers to pass the CDL exam and tackle easier driving assignments on the road.