International lorry drivers employed by Dutch firms recorded the sharpest median pay rise of any occupation in the first quarter of 2026, according to Van Spaendonck’s Loonindex Q1 2026. The payroll study shows that median pay for international drivers surged 13.39% quarter-on-quarter, from €3,386.56 in Q4 2025 to €3,840.01 in Q1 2026, the largest jump among the professions tracked in the data.
Van Spaendonck’s index is based on 1.2 million anonymised monthly payslips from Loket and reflects actual salaries paid in the previous quarter. For context, the median salary across Dutch SMEs as a whole rose by 3.21% in Q1 2026, to €3,612.52, meaning international drivers outpaced the wider workforce by more than four to one.
That leap comes against a backdrop of broad-based pay growth in the Netherlands, though on a far more modest scale. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reported that collectively agreed wages across the Dutch economy were 4.5% higher year-on-year in Q1 2026, with real wage growth of 2.0% after inflation. International lorry drivers are, in other words, in a league of their own.
A tight labour market is still pushing pay higher
Part of the rise reflects the new Dutch collective labour agreement for road transport. Dutch hauliers’ association TLN said the 2026 deal brought a 4% increase from 1 January in the standard wage bands used across the sector, as well as in gross allowances.
But the CLA alone does not explain a 13% quarterly jump. The remainder appears to be a direct market response to a driver shortage that shows no sign of easing. According to STL’s latest sector monitor, the Dutch transport and logistics labour market remains very tight in almost every region. The number of truck drivers has fallen to 92,333 — down 0.8% — and staff shortages remain the single biggest obstacle for operators.
The demographic picture is deepening the pressure. The average age of truck drivers in the Netherlands has risen to 45.5, and more than 30% are now aged 55 or older. With a wave of retirements on the horizon and no obvious pipeline of replacements, the structural squeeze on supply is unlikely to ease soon, which may mean pay continues to climb.
