Latest driver pay data shows fleets are leaning on wages in search for retention strategies
Which drivers are seeing their pay climb in late 2025? How has per-mile pay changed over the past year? What’s happening with sign-on bonuses and guaranteed pay? What are the most frequently benchmarked locations in the U.S. for driver wages this year? New data just published in NTI’s National Survey of Driver Wages gives deep insights into those questions and much more.
NTI’s Leah Shaver named a finalist for 2025 Influential Woman in Trucking Award
NTI is immensely proud to announce that Leah Shaver, NTI President & CEO, has been named one of four finalists for this year’s Influential Woman in Trucking award, which honors female leaders who are shaping the future of trucking, inspiring others through innovation, leadership, and a commitment to advancing women in the industry.
Driver supply update: A look at the impacts of ramped-up enforcement of non-domiciled CDLs and English-Language Proficiency
Recent regulatory changes removing hundreds of thousands of drivers only exacerbates critical driver supply constraints as industry nears a reckoning moment. Read NTI’s latest analysis here.
From childhood excitement to teen apathy to discouraging young people to even enter trucking, we can’t let the next generation of drivers slip away
Where does the disconnect occur between a child’s excitement of trucks and truckers, teens who have become somewhat apathetic to trucking, and our professional drivers who say they discourage their kids from entering trucking in any way? Here’s what drivers recently told me about their experiences — and steps we can take to bridge the appreciation and satisfaction gap they feel.
Is guaranteed pay for drivers the right move for your fleet?
Guaranteed pay has been a growing incentive for recruiting and retention. But is it right for your fleet?
From crash lawsuits and regulatory compliance to constraining the driver pool, English-Language Proficiency regs need to be on your fleet’s radar
With enforcement of English-Language Proficiency regulations ramping up, motor carriers and private fleets must be aware not only of compliance with the rules and their associated regulatory risk — but also of the “significant exposure” to highway crash litigation should an event occur with a driver who may not meet ELP requirements.
Driver pay momentum quietly builds steam even as freight challenges persist
Amid an upswell of market uncertainty in 2025, driver wages have shown surprising momentum, with one key metric showing its largest gain in over 2 years. Here are the highlights from summer 2025 driver pay data.
As driver sign-on bonus activity bubbles, a look at re-evaluating a predominant recruiting incentive
Sign-on bonuses saw their first dollar-amount increase since late 2022. Prevalence of sign-ons hasn’t wavered, hovering around 70% over the past three years. With sign-on bonus amounts bubbling again and despite their high prevalence, the question remains: Are sign-on bonuses an effective tool for your fleet to use? Particularly when it comes to retention? NTI explores those questions here.
In trucking’s talent tug of war, these fleets keep pushing the standard of what a truck driving job can be
I had the immense pleasure earlier this month of delivering the keynote address to kick off this year’s National Private Truck Council’s Annual Conference & Exhibition. Here are three takeaways from the event that have stuck with me and that I wanted to share, as I feel there are lessons we can all learn, whether we operate a private or for-hire fleet.
As uncertainty lurks, driver pay has seemingly entered a new cycle
Beginning in the late summer and continuing through the fall and winter, though, the holding pattern broke, and data from NTI surveys of motor carriers shows driver pay has entered what appears to be a new season as capacity shakes out of the market and as both spot and contract freight markets recalibrate. Here’s what survey data from NTI’s National Survey of Driver Wages shows for driver pay movement in early spring 2025.