Take This Job and Shove It: Examining the Influence of Role Stressors and Emotional Exhaustion on Organizational Commitment and Identification in Professional Truck Drivers

Professional truck drivers experience many challenges in the course of performing their jobs. Drivers must meet the needs of their company, shippers, and receivers as well as comply with safety regulations. It is well documented that truck drivers are prone to physical exhaustion; however, they may also be subject to emotional exhaustion, which can impact their decision to remain with a company. This research examines the influence of job stressors, such as role conflict and role ambiguity and their relationship to emotional exhaustion in professional truck drivers. Furthermore, the effect that job stressors and emotional exhaustion have on the efforts of a firm to build corporate identification, collective mind, and commitment among truck drivers is examined. Using qualitative and quantitative data from 435 professional truck drivers, a conceptual model is developed and tested using structural equation modeling. Findings are discussed and implications for managers in improving driver retention rates are offered.     

Examining Industry Effects for Truck Drivers

Disaggregating truck drivers by industrialclassification, rather than using a private carriagefor hire distinction, a significant wage gap isfound between drivers in trucking services and driversin all other industries. The premium for drivers intrucking services is largest relative to drivers inwholesale and retail trade and agriculture, who aremost likely to be true private carriage drivers. Drivers in construction and mining, less likely tomeet the true definition of private carriage, havesmaller wage disadvantages. This suggests that thewage gap between for-hire and private carriage driversmay be underestimated in other research.