WorkHound, a leader in employee feedback management for frontline workforce industries, today announced the results of its Annual Driver Trends report. The Annual WorkHound Trends Report compiles employee feedback data from 99,967 anonymous comments collected from 32,600 truck drivers across 109 carriers, providing an in-depth analysis of driver concerns, challenges, and key trends within the industry.
“The trucking industry continues to face inflationary pressures, record-high fuel prices, and ongoing supply chain disruptions,” said Max Farrell, co-founder and CEO at WorkHound. “Coupled with the long hours and often stressful working conditions inherent to a truck driver’s job responsibilities, burnout, and turnover rates have reached an all-time high. On the heels of a year filled with unpredictability, retaining employees remains a top priority for carrier companies.”
WorkHound saw a 59% increase in comments from 2021, likely due to new users sharing on the platform for the first time and existing users sharing feedback more often. Drivers using WorkHound feedback rate their overall satisfaction on a scale from 1 to 10. To simplify the data into quantifiable metrics, comments receive a negative, positive, or neutral score and are categorized into 13 standard themes.
For the first time in WorkHound trends history, Praise was reported as the highest-mentioned theme across driver feedback, reflected across 24,442 positive comments. This speaks to a larger workforce trend in which drivers wish to acknowledge the positive aspects that make their roles at work easier and more efficient. Additionally, WorkHound found that truckers value when employers recognize their successes, allowing both parties to make note of what is working well, and which issues they should lean into.
On the contrary, 63% of feedback for the Communication theme was negative, making it the No. 1 negative theme of the year. The leading fear among drivers providing feedback is retaliation and punishment. However, WorkHound research shows that most companies are more invested in resolution than retribution, and the data suggests it is a fruitful strategy. When analyzing contact rate in relation to satisfaction scores, WorkHound found that companies who regularly contact their employees following a negative submission have higher overall satisfaction scores. This suggests empathetic engagement from employers closing the feedback loop can have a positive impact on working relationships and, in turn, retention rates.
In addition to the negative feedback surrounding Communication, another 59.35% of comments about driver Pay were also negative. Many of the comments were about misunderstanding pay structure, and others pointed to a lack of communication around the pay process. The desire for higher cost per mile, detention pay, and breakdown pay exists, as it does in every industry. But a significant number of pay-related comments revolved around the communication and information surrounding pay. These comments reflected confusion about reimbursements, pay periods, and even proved some recruiters set false expectations. Although advertising higher-than-market rates or optimal annual earnings can attract new drivers, companies should be cautious to not overpromise and underdeliver.
Farrell continued, “WorkHound’s AnnualTrends Report sheds light on the critical issues faced by the industry’s most valuable assets, its drivers, and the invaluable benefits reaped by providing your workforce with a platform to express their thoughts, concerns, and needs.”
Anonymity is a pillar of the WorkHound platform, encouraging users to share feedback honestly without sharing their identities. Due to the positive feedback around anonymity received from companies and their drivers, WorkHound is launching a 2-way anonymous messaging tool that will allow managers to chat with their teams to resolve issues in real time. This will empower frontline workforces with the freedom and comfort to speak with honesty until a resolution is achieved and the message is closed. However, if employers believe they can resolve a raised issue through direct contact, they can request the driver’s identity. Data from the Annual Trends Report concludes the 30 days following a reveal are the most crucial to whether a driver chooses to stay with a company. In aggregate, companies using WorkHound retained 11,843 drivers for at least 30 days post-reveal, accounting for an 87.8% post-reveal retention rate.
