Turnover of professional drivers

The aspects of turnover were studied in a cohort of 1,597 male drivers who had joined the trade union between 1967 and 1969 and who lived in six urban municipalities in different parts of the country. The retrospective study comprised the period from 1969 to 1979. At the end of this period, 1.5% of the cohort could not be traced, 3% were living abroad, and 5% were dead. An inquiry concerning occupation since 1969 was sent to 1,453 drivers (91% of the cohort). In all, 1,156 drivers responded (80%). A total of 69% of the subjects who answered the questions was still employed as drivers in 1979, 24% had turned to some other trade, 7% had retired, and less than 1% reported that they were out of work. The changes within the trade favored bus driving. The most common reasons for changing work were salary, the heaviness and irregularity of the work, and health. The major cause of death was accidents and other external causes, as could be expected in view of the drivers' comparatively young age in 1969 (mean age 29 years).