Hauliers can afford higher wages-reporl
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MANY privately-owned hauliers could absorb substantial wage rises without needing to increase their charges significantly, according to last week's ICC Business Ratio Report on the industry.
It shows that the seven top firms in a review of 60 general and specialist hauliers (see CM last week) achieved a profitability ratio (pre-tax profit compared to total assets) of 25 per cent, whereas the figure for the whole industry is only 6.6 per cent.
The report's authors suggest that the industry is well placed to absorb a 20 to 22 per cent wages settlement in the cur rent dispute and point to the ratio between total wages and the number of employees to support this conclusion.
They say that over the last three years this has risen by an average of 42.4 per cent, but add that average turnover has almost kept pace at 41.9 per cent.
Although ICC says that the industry's profit margins have declined from 5.6 per cent to 4.7 per cent and that pr, fitability had declined from 7 per cent to 6.6 per cent, stresses that this induct( loss-making National Freigl Corporation subsidiaries.
In this category, Nation Carriers had a 39.4 per cei asset figure and a profitabilit ratio of minus 31.5 per cent.
By contrast, league-toppir George White (Dagenhan Ltd managed a profitabilit ratio of 48.7 per cent wit assets of only £301,000.
The report points out au the public-private split do( not always follow this patter] citing P and 0 Roadways' rati of minus 11.4 per cent, an Midlands BRS with 16.6 p( cent. The BRS figure is d( scribed as one "which many private owner would be prou of and try to emulate."