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New drivers may be 'locket!
Page 6
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in' to deter rivals poaching
• by Guy Sheppard and Dominic Perry
A new "lock-in" clause may soon help hauliers prevent newly trained drivers being poached by rival employers.
The idea is being developed by consultants to the government-sponsored Road Haulage Porum to counter fears that the i',1,500-plus cost of training Class C drivers is often a waste of money.
A study of 300 drivers, trainers and operators shows that a reluctance to sponsor trainees is particularly widespread among smaller hauliers.
John Bowman of the Road Haulage and Distribution Training Council says the consultants at West Midlands Enterprise are trying to work out a clause which could easily be adopted by a wide range of hauliers.
But he warns that the main benefit of such a clause will be more of a moral lever to stop newly trained drivers quitting early, rather than a guaranteed way to protect an investment.
"At the end of the day, as with any contract clause, it is how keen you are to enforce it," Bowman points out. "We are not looking to produce a litigious situation between employers and employees."
Sally Thornley, skills issue manager at the Freight Transport Association, says that ideally 'golden handcuffs' would not involve any sort of penalty: "We would like to see a more positive image of this, whereby drivers are encouraged to stay rather than penalising those who want to leave.
"For example," she adds, "you could have a situation where drivers actually had a financial incentive to stay for a certain period of time after they completed their training."
Bryan Sissons, managing director of Sherburn in Elmet, Yorks, based OW Sissons, supports the idea: "There is such a huge investment in terms of both time and money with training new drivers that there has to be a golden lock-in of some sort," he suggests.
However, he is not without reservations: "That said I'd have to see the small print, it's all very well having a golden lock-in, but what happens if the dnver doesn't turn out well or doesn't follow your procedures?"
The consultants, who are due to report back in November, are also looking at the viability of a new industrywide training scheme to reduce the widespread shortages of truck drivers.
Bowman adds: "What we are edging towards is whether there's any support for providing a collective pot for driver training." Bowman denies that would mean a return to compulsory training levy hauliers which was phase( in the 1980$: "We are sure are probably much more ble 21st-century ideas arc The old idea was a fairly bersome one."