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Economic slump hits liehiclie transporters
Page 6
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By Christopher Walton, Roger Brown and Chris Tindatl THE ECONOMIC downturn has hit the car and van transport logistics sector, with newly released figures showing sales of new vehicles have fallen by more than 20%.
Now Autologic has confirmed it is to make almost half the drivers in its Walon UK division redundant because of falling volumes.
Bernard Brown, group HR director of Autologic, tells CM: "In common with a lot of other carriers at the moment, whose volumes are down, we have to focus on a strategy for the economic health of the business.
"We employ 500 drivers across the UK, and we've addressed the trade unions with the purpose of making 200 redundant. We're looking at a way of mitigating compulsory redundancies. We have a voluntary scheme, from which we hope to get the numbers." Brown adds that if compulsory redundancies were required, they would not be expected until the end of the year.
Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that sales of new cars fell 21% last month, compared with September 2007. Van registrations were down 22.1% to 318,762 and 4.6% lower than last year. However, trucks fared better, with new registrations rising 3.6%, and increasing almost 28% for the rolling year.
Paul Everitt, SMMT chief executive, believes the credit crunch affected the September figures, and adds: "We expect the van market will stay well below recent levels for some time. Trucks, stable for the month and well up for the rolling year, saw orders drop through the summer, so registrations will suffer soon."
• Carlisle-based vehicle deliverer ECM would not confinn or deny rumours that it has been forced to make 45 drivers redundant because of the tough economic conditions. However, one driver tells CM: "They gave the drivers 30 days' notice. They say it a downturn in work and they need to bring it down to a level to make the company more viable."
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