More than three-quarters of transportation companies surveyed by HireRight expect to growth their workforce this year, but finding and retaining employees remains a concern.

The employment solutions company released findings from its 2018 Annual Employment Screening Benchmark survey showing that transportation companies are trying new strategies to overcome shortages of drivers and other employee types in a year when they intend to expand. Most companies listed recruiting qualified candidates as a top challenge for the industry.

Investing in Employee Recruitment

Companies revealed plans for overcoming employment challenges, with 40% responding that they were planning to invest in retention programs, as well as training and development programs. The percentage was higher among employers with more than 2,500 employees.

Other planned investments included implementing recruiting at more trade events and improving the candidate experience. Some companies planned to introduce new hires to company executives, extend orientation and training periods, and use existing employees as liaisons and mentors.

HireRight found that with a quarter of drivers leaving the industry because of retirement, transportation companies were having to change hiring strategies to attract a younger and more diverse audience, because the old methods were becoming less effective.

New Driver Recruiting Strategies

Referrals remained the most effective way to find candidates for most fleets, and more than half of fleets said that they were using social networks to find talent, up from only 42% in 2017.

Print media recruiting has seen a precipitous decline in the past four years, dropping from 57% of companies using it in 2015 to only 38% in 2018. Outreach through job fairs was down 8% from last year and outreach with corporate websites also declined.

The HireRight 2018 Annual Employment Screening Benchmarking Report is based on a survey of 5,886 U.S.-based professionals who indicated they were knowledgeable about employment screening and recruiting. Of the total survey respondents, 18% indicated that their primary industry was transportation. The results in this report were compiled from those respondents.

“This year’s survey results demonstrate that the transportation industry is embracing innovative strategies to recruit new talent and is truly listening to what candidates want from application to onboarding, including benefits,” said Kent Ferguson, director of transportation solutions at HireRight.

For more information from HireRight’s transportation spotlight from the survey, click here.