The political landscape for many countries in Europe is changing, and we've reached an important crossroads. Without understating it, there is a threat to national GDP and the chance to have a buoyant, thriving economy.
Policy is driving the labour market towards a more nationalistic approach for skills development and driver recruitment. Revised academic syllabi, apprenticeship schemes, fast track training and secondments seem to be on the rise, and while that's great for local jobs there is a big, heavy cloud looming large overhead.
That cloud represents the deficit between new and returning drivers v demand for drivers, and the reason it's dark and grey instead of light and fluffy is because the drive to recruit truck and bus drivers will, in most cases, not be enough.
Take the UK as an example. In 2017, there were 321,000 employed truck drivers. Just 4 years later, that figure had shrunk to 268,000. 16.5% fewer drivers in a growing market with higher demand. Now, I don't have the figures for the number of new or returning UK drivers over the last 12 months, but I'm willing to bet it's nowhere near the 53,000 that left the industry between 2017 and 2021.
And it's not just the UK facing such problems either. Pretty much every European country is trying to tackle the shortage in its own way.
So, this begs the question, if current measures can't provide enough drivers, then how will countries solve the driver crisis?
While the shortage of skilled drivers is a global problem, there are glimmers of hope. In North Africa and Western Asia particularly, there are many drivers who are prepared to relocate to Europe to secure a trucking job. These people are skilled, qualified individuals who, in most cases, have years of experience dealing with hazardous conditions, yet the opportunity to relocate is hindered by three key factors; red tape, stereotyping and the threat of social dumping.
The EU is currently working to reduce the burden of red tape, without creating risk. The new 2024/1233 Directive aims to make it easier for companies to hire third-country drivers by streamlining the application process and improving their rights and protections.
There is also the ongoing development of a transparent scheme to recognise third-country drivers' skills and certificates (as long as they meet EU standards) and the IRU is currently undertaking an innovative project on the mobility of third country drivers.
However, the challenge of stereotype is a significant hurdle. As humans, we tend to have subconscious bias towards people who look and sound similar, so when we meet someone who speaks a different language it is an immediate barrier. Of course, this can be overcome with education, but perhaps the more challenging factor is the perception that a professional driver from, say, Egypt, is not as good as a driver from Germany.
These attitudes are generally formed from old opinions that have stood the test of time. Sure, EU nations have the benefit of mandatory ongoing training which is often not implemented elsewhere, but the standards in non-EU countries is usually unknown. Despite this, judgement is often passed without being based on facts or research.
In case you don't know, social dumping is the practice of offering workers substandard pay and working conditions, often to gain a competitive advantage. It goes without saying, it's important to respect worker rights, regardless of their background. Sadly, the reality is that some European employers may consider a third-country driver as an opportunity to pay less or provide less.
Despite these challenges, it's essential to start thinking more carefully about how a European driver shortage can be overcome. Perhaps the best way to approach it is to have a flexible policy that creates opportunities for both local and international drivers. After all, at the end of the day, they are all professional drivers who are able to fulfill demand using skills most ordinary drivers simply don't have.
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