Firms face crippling training bill ce
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Pi UK hauliers will face a bill running into many millions of pounds if proposed European Union legislation on compulsory driver training goes ahead.
Figures produced by the Road Haulage & Distribution Training Council (F1HDTC) indicate that if the directive is applied in its current form the industry will need to find £125m a year to fund the new training requirements. The RHDTC warns that the bill could rise to £250m once other factors such as driver downtime are taken into consideration.
When the draft training directive was launched at the end of last year (CM 7-13 Dec 2000) it promised to harmonise driver training standards across the EU. It proposes up to 420 hours' training before a driver can begin to earn money, and continual training for all drivers.
Edward Jenkins, training manager at Rhys Davies Freight Logistics, says: "The indicatIon is that the cost to industry could be £250m a year, which is an absolute fortune when you consider that the government is only giving about E15-20m a year."
Steve Ellis, training manager at the Road Haulage Association, is also concerned: "We have to face the very real threat to our operations. There is nothing in this directive that will encourage new people into the industry or encourage those already in it to stay" The directive is currently in its consultation stage: it is expected to come into force by 2005. For details of the draft directive contact: the Driving Standards Agency on 0115 9012500.