Employee-owned carrier Lawrence Freight announced a 2022 pay increase of as much as 40% for company drivers. The new pay scale, which tops out at 70 cents per mile, started Saturday and includes over-the-road and flatbed drivers.
The Roanoke, Virginia-based truckload carrier will also pay drivers another 2.5 cents per mile, up to $3,000 annually, in the form of quarterly safety bonuses. The total comp plan now allows TL drivers to earn up to $88,000 annually, with flatbed operators seeing as much as $92,000 per year.
“Our drivers have continued to provide exceptional service to our customers in one of the most demanding periods of time our country has experienced in peacetime,” said CEO Warren Groseclose.
COVID concerns and increased freight demand have heightened the need for truck drivers. Many providers continue to increase pay packages to mitigate the industry’s capacity shortages.
In April 2021, Lawrence increased OTR driver pay by 4 cents per mile.
“Professional truck drivers are the most important link in the supply chain and without them, our economy would fail and millions of our fellow Americans would suffer,” Groseclose added.
Lawrence’s freight services also include waste removal and household goods moving. Additionally, the company provides warehousing and equipment maintenance and is a distributor for Case Construction Equipment.