From BGSU OFFICE OF MARKETING & BRAND STRATEGY
A Bowling Green State University economist is studying how to improve the safety record of U.S. truck drivers, an occupation considered to be one of the most dangerous and demanding in the country, accounting for about 20% of all vehicle-related fatalities.
Dr. Walt Ryley, an assistant teaching professor in the BGSU Schmidthorst College of Business, said he believes there could be strength in data. Because of the nature of driver compensation, he has sought to prove a discernible connection between driver pay and safety on the roadway.
He said trucking safety is a major issue nationwide, and in an extremely busy transportation corridor such as northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan, any improvement in safety could have an immediate impact.
“In this region, a major piece of the commerce involves trucking,” Ryley said.
Ryley said it is important to look at the economic determinants of safety which will provide a more complete and holistic picture of safety outcomes. The work structure for truck drivers, especially those driving long haul routes – low pay, extensive hours and an abundance of non-paid work associated with truck driving – all contribute to diminished safety on the roadways.
“I’m a proponent of data, and I believe it is possible to show that some of our safety issues are among the hidden costs of low pay. It is clear that everybody has to pay for safety, so everyone will benefit if we make trucking safer,” he said, adding that the question remains as to where and how the investment in additional safety takes place.
Ryley, who specializes in the study of industrial organization and health economics, said that after the trucking industry was deregulated with the Motor Carrier Act of 1980, trucking companies shifted into survival mode. In an intensely competitive environment, they became fixated on simply getting cargo to market at the lowest possible price. Driver pay and overall safety were likely sacrificed in that transition.
“Trucking is complicated, and after we experienced a large influx of new carriers, the increased supply deteriorated wages,” Ryley said. “Back in the mid-20th century, trucking was one of the most lucrative blue-collar occupations, but with deregulation that is no longer the case. In the process, safety and health have been compromised.”
Ryley said that while the number of hours truck drivers work is subject to federal limits, a substantial portion of this time might be devoted to non-compensated tasks. They are often called on to tarp loads, wait in a staging area for the load and unload process, and perform various other duties that are, more often than not, unpaid.
“I’m struck by how much time drivers spend on non-driving and how little they get paid for that, and there are definite safety implications of unpaid time on the job,” he said.
Ryley is currently working on a government report looking at alternative types of pay and different outcomes, and he is optimistic that safer days on the nation’s roadways are ahead.
“Taking a closer look at the economic variables, pay specifically, in safety outcomes, will have an impact.”
