Citation

Monaco K, Willmert J. J. Transp. Res. Forum 2003; 57(3): 167-177.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2003, Transportation Research Forum)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

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Abstract

Different data sources provide very different pictures of current wages and working conditions for truck drivers. This study compares wages and hours of truck drivers across two disparate data sets: the 1997 Current Population Survey (CPS) and the 1997 and 1998 University of Michigan Trucking Industry Program's (UMTIP) Survey of Drivers. The CPS is a nationally representative survey but the scope of questions is limited, preventing analysis of particular segments of the labor force. The CPS asks about typical weekly hours worked, but drivers may understate their total working hours. The UMTIP survey of drivers in the motor freight industry probably over-represents long-haul drivers but elicits more accurate responses about compensation and hours of work. For this study, each data set was divided into three different categories: all drivers, private carriage and for-hire. The private carriage and for-hire categories were further divided by union status. Statistical analysis shows that the reported hourly wage and average hours worked numbers are higher in the UMTIP data set than the CPS data set. Similarities were found when looking specifically at nonunion for-hire drivers, especially when focusing on hours of service violations. Results show that 48% of the UMTIP drives and 26% of the CPS drivers reported driving in excess of the 60-hour limit. A positive and significant relationship was found between weekly earnings and hour of service violations, suggesting that drivers increase their weekly earnings by driving more and therefore increase the probability of violating the 60-hour rule.