Road sweeper specialists Go Plant Limited has taken an innovative approach to overcome the national shortage of qualified and experienced HGV drivers.
Road sweeper specialists Go Plant Limited has taken an innovative approach to overcome the national shortage of qualified and experienced HGV drivers.
They have recruited two car drivers at their Leicestershire headquarters and committed to provide them with fully-funded training to get their HGV Class 2 qualification through with the company.
Go Plant's East Midlands area manager Rob Brookes, said: “With increased sales, we needed more drivers to meet our customer demand. However, when we came to recruit new staff, the shortage of qualified drivers became quickly apparent and so we decided to take matters into our own hands.
“The cost of training remains one of the top barriers to getting started in the industry, so we recruited a small team of car licence holders as yard men and delivery staff on the condition that they would sign-up to an 18 month employment agreement on completing their fully-funded HGV Class 2 licence through us.”
The Freight Transport Association among others has identified the need to get younger people into the profession as the industry struggles to overcome the national “driver crisis”.
In some parts of the industry, more than 80% of drivers are over 50 and approaching retirement.
“By funding and overseeing HGV training in-house, we can ensure that we develop a high-calibre team of drivers,” added Rob.
“We're committed to the ongoing development of all our staff and are delighted with the enthusiasm our new trainee drivers have shown.”
