ARLINGTON, Va. – Truck driver turnover in the U.S. fell by 9% for large fleets in the fourth quarter of 2018, to 78%.

That’s down 10% year-over-year. In 2018, the turnover at large fleets averaged 89%. At smaller carriers, the turnover rate rose 5% to 77%, a 3% decrease year-over-year. The rate averaged 73% at small U.S. carriers in 2018, the lowest churn rate since 2011.

Turnover at less-than-truckload fleets was unchanged at 10%, averaging 11% on the year.

“The driver market continues to be tight, but not quite as much as the middle of 2018. The overall trend late last year was that turnover is slowing,” said ATA chief economist Bob Costello. “There can be various reasons for this – either freight volumes are decelerating and as such fleets pulled back on recruiting efforts or fleets’ efforts to increase pay are paying dividends in the form of reduced turnover. The truth probably lies somewhere in between, but it is a trend that bears watching.”