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Agency believes it's time to open a doorway to the East
Page 12
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The agency ADR is continuing the trend of recruiting staff in Eastern Europe to
cope with the driver shortage in the UK. Jennifer Ball reports.
DRIVER AGENCY ADR Resources has become the second firm of its type to start looking to Eastern Europe in a bid to recruit new drivers.
The agency says that recruitment will operate in the same way as at its UK offices. Drivers will be required to carry out driving assessments and English language tests before spending a familiarisation period in the UK to ensure that they are suitable. Keith Churchouse, ADR's CEO, says Poland has a good supply of skilled drivers, many of whom are attracted to working in the UK: "There is a significant shortage of drivers in the UK
which is felt most acutely during peak periods. Our discussions with our clients suggest that they would welcome additional driving resources."
He dismisses criticism of recruiting drivers from outside the UK: "The health and education sectors have long looked outside of the UK to source well qualified personnel to meet gaps in domestic supply.We are simply replicating that model for the logistics industry." The firm aims to recruit about 100 drivers in its first year and has already taken on 20. They will be
on the same wages as its UK staff.
• Mass departure of Polish truck drivers to work in the West has left Polish operators struggling to find new recruits, according to Polish press reports.
Marcin Kobylarz, head of the Polish road transport employers' association OZPTD, told the Glos Pomorza newspaper that operators all over the country are concerned that since Britain and Ireland opened their labour markets many Eastern European drivers have been heading west in search of higher wages.