The lorry driver shortage crisis first grabbed headlines in early June when major distributor Nationwide Produce warned that fresh produce destined for UK supermarkets was being dumped due to a shortage of drivers.
The logistics industry, which retailers – especially grocers – rely on to transport goods to stores or warehouses, is facing an estimated shortfall of around 100,000 HGV drivers.
Hauliers have blamed the shortage on a large proportion of drivers being foreign nationals from European countries who had returned to the EU after Brexit.
This was combined with truck drivers not being included on the UK Government’s list of skilled labour, leaving new arrivals needing immigration paperwork.
In addition, Covid-19 had seen no new British truck drivers trained within the past 12 months, while changes in the rules of self-employment had led to a 25 per cent increase in agency driver charges.
BRC food and sustainability director Andrew Opie previously said that retailers were aware of a fall in HGV driver numbers and were working with their suppliers to ensure that consumers still have the same selection of fresh produce.
Last month, the government revealed plans to tackle the shortage by easing driver qualification requirements and improved working conditions. Other measures include giving drivers more official parking spaces and boosting standards of lorry parks to help encourage hauliers to stay in the sector.
Grocers have since urged customers not to panic buy in response to reports of emptying shelves, saying they were continuing to receive regular deliveries.
Nonetheless, almost 3000 hauliers are now planning a strike on August 23 over low pay and working conditions, which has led to retailers offering incentives.
Here are the retailers that, at the time of print, have attempted to address the lorry driver shortage amid the nation crisis:
Tesco is offering a £1000 joining bonus to lorry drivers who join the Big 4 grocer until September 30.
Potential candidates are told that the role offers the opportunity to be “an ambassador on our roads” where “you’ll play a vital role for our customers and communities, representing Tesco on the highways and byways of the UK”.
Tesco’s Booker wholesale division has also provided a temporary £5-an-hour pay rise for its Hemel Hempstead depot drivers, according to the Unite union.
Aldi
Aldi has increased the salary of lorry drivers as part of efforts to keep shelves stocked.
M&S
Marks & Spencer will offer new lorry drivers a sign-on bonus. The retailer said that from this month, new drivers joining M&S’s logistics partner Gist can earn up to £5000 in incentives through a combination of a £2000 sign-on bonus and up to three additional retention payments.
Drivers can also benefit from discounts and a “generous” pension, as well as training and career development schemes.
John Lewis Partnership
The John Lewis Partnership will raise its lorry driver salaries by up to £5000.
The firm – which runs the John Lewis department store arm and Waitrose supermarket chain – said it would start the increase in annual salaries on Sunday.
Large goods vehicle (LGV) drivers employed by John Lewis and Waitrose will receive a pay rise of around £2 an hour in their base pay across all its regional and national distribution sites.
The partnership employs around 900 drivers who will benefit from the pay increase.
New drivers with C+E licences joining before November will also be offered a “welcome payment” of £1000, in addition to the pay rise.
Poundland
Poundland is offering an incentives package, which includes a bonus scheme, to boost recruitment and provide career development for for existing and new Poundland drivers.
The retailer is offering to pay the costs of getting a HGV Class 1 licence – which can be as much as £2000, including the four-day training course.
This would enable existing HGV Class 2 licence holders, who drive rigid body units, to move to the next level so they can drive articulated lorries.
Poundland said it would offer the support to HGV Class 2 drivers with six months experience, who will go on to a 12 month training contract when they get their Class 1 licence.
The offer to help fund the costs of getting a Class 1 licence is also open to existing Poundland staff and the discount retailer said six have already joined the scheme.
Meanwhile, those working out of one of Poundland’s three distribution centres in Springvale, West Midlands, Wigan in Greater Manchester or Harlow, Essex from July to September will qualify for a £1000 bonus in October.
The retailer said that would be another £1000 bonus in January for those who work for Poundland between October and December.
Poundland is also currently recruiting more than 100 drivers across the three distribution centres.
Co-op
Although Co-op has not revealed plans to increase the salary of its lorry drivers, the retailer is recruiting up to 3000 temporary colleagues to keep depots working and stores re-stocked.
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A major part for the driver shortage is drivers from 7.5 ton lorries and above said that they think that the cpc card is a waste of time and they are not prepared to sit it if it was to be scrapped we would have more delivery vehicles out on the roads.
Yes I agree with scraping the cpc .I send a letter to the transport minister he refused.to do that he.thinks it is safer to increase the driving hours on tried driver this not safe.I have a class 1 hgv & I have a class 1 Pcv with 40years experience &stop driving because of the cpc mike
Spot on , me too. Not paying for any more CPC, waste of time.
Its about time we are being recognised as the back bone of this country and to European countries , we deserve a pay rise !! We serve our country and should be awarded for it , not treated like a second class citizen. Why increase the hours ? We work long hours as it is and I’m glad to park up and hit the sack at the end of a long hard working day all this cpc crap and now I drive an office” not a truck ” being watched and timed all day long !! Let us do our job the way it should be done and the trucking industry will thrive once more .
Cpc is a waist of time and money needs scrapping, allot of problems stem from good old DVLA and there money making delays and restrictions. They take forever to turn licence around . There are thousands of class 1 drivers given up driving due to pay, and cpc, and other restrictions.
Government want to encourage british drivers back start treating them fairly.
When eastern Europeans joined the EU that was the downfall, cheap labour. The big super markets loved it and transport firms loved it, cheap labour. The boss used to say quantity not quality, now it’s bit them in the arse. Pay a descent wage and conditions, you’ve had it good for 18 years. Brexit was all about integration letting to many in and ripping off the system , just pay a good wage for a professional drivers and then see how many you need.
Load off crap putting drivers in vehicles with no experience at all just to fill the shelfs waiting for accidents to just pay right money for proper experience driver’s
Well said Iain. This has been coming a long time. We have been crapped on with the threat of the sack if we don’t do the overtime for a long time. Pay up and shut up or more will leave the industry for an office job.
With increasing evidence of gaps appearing on shelves, what will it take for the Government to see this as the crisis it is. Clearly catching up with the 45K outstanding HGV driver tests should be the priority.
Spot on my freind you hit the nail right on the head
Stop driving after my father had a heart attack to look after him I had a class 2 I now work for Tesco part time as I could not afford to pay for CPC. Tacho card . Medical and I am probably not the only one in this situation
I got my C1 back in 1984 as I loved driving. takung pride in handling a large heavy vehicle safely. Since then everything has gone steadily downhill. Now I require a yearly medical; 5 cpc’s; and other costs all of which I have to pay for regularly. Driveing on. permanantly congested roads withall the estrictions & penalties levied on the vehicles we drive and where they can go. Why would anyone want to go into this profession today?
I got my C1 back in 1984 as I loved driving. takung pride in handling a large heavy vehicle safely. Since then everything has gone steadily downhill. Now I require a yearly medical; 5 cpc’s; and other costs all of which I have to pay for regularly. Driving on. permanantly congested roads withall the estrictions & penalties levied on the vehicles we drive and where they can go. Add to that Gordon Brown’s synical exploitation 9f cheap European labour to undercut wages. Why would anyone want to go into this profession today?
I took my class 2 around 25 yrs ago, and pcv 30 yrs ago. Pcv has always paid more. Get all these office jockeys behind the wheel as they seem to be experts in the field. Scrap the rubbish cpc, and offer the drivers a decent living, and make it more family oriented. There are many pcv drivers out there who have the hgv license..so make it a worth while offer….
The truck driver is seen as the mud on ones shoe bottom of the ladder .. the truck driver is up against everyone from vosa. police. The truck driver always seen to be blamed ..companies you drive for .the customer you’re delivering to .the public on the roads. people always go on about the money I’ve been a truck driver since 1992 yes it’s good money but you have to put the hours in .. to sort this out you need to look deeper into why it’s like this to sort it out they need to address the under issues 1st
It’s not about Brexit, Covid, IR35 or europeans returning home.
Basic truth is, drivers are sick to death of crap wages, inexperienced planners, lack of parking facilities at service stations, CPC (which is a stealth tax) and the attitude of other road users towards HGV drivers.
Now the shelves are not being filled all of a sudden we’re wanted and more money suddenly appears?
I came off the road after 28 years as i was sick to death of the attitude from planners trying to max out my hours daily and the daily congested roads because of crap driving by some members of the public.
we need better conditions for parking better pay remove the cpc and get rid of the 48 hr working time average directive let’s just get back to the old British regulations and throw the stupid E.U regulations out we’re no longer part of it but still bound by there rules finally drivers are getting a say and pay is slowly coming up to what it should be
35 years a truck driver, cpc has run out so I packed it in (nobody wants to for it or my time), waiting for £20 an hour to be offered maybe I will fund it myself.
I Never want to work for any of them
Good Company never looking for driver
Its about time we are being recognised as the back bone of this country and to European countries , we deserve a pay rise !! We serve our country and should be awarded for it , not treated like a second class citizen. Why increase the hours ? We work long hours as it is and I’m glad to park up and hit the sack at the end of a long hard working day all this cpc crap and now I drive an office” not a truck ” being watched and timed all day long !! Let us do our job the way it should be done and the trucking industry will thrive once more .
All professional class 1 drivers let’s join hand in hand and unite together
and call a strike, we have suffered for too long, your everybody’s cunt, sitting for hours at RDCs waiting to get unloaded, customers loading thinking they fuckin own you fanning about getting you loaded. All local councils don’t want you near the towns for overnight break living in fuckin laybys like tramps pissing in a bucket and shitting in a carrier bag, no fucking sleep getting blown out your bed as night trunk men going by rock the fuckin truck.
Then when on the road surrounded by fuckin car bastards that want to commit suicide, fuckin limbo dancer trying to get under the trailer.
Shut the fuckin country down now park the lorries up, let cunts in their cars get supplies every council in the country fuck shut them down.
Now is the time strike while the iron is hot, shut this Tory government down.
You have the power let’s go for it.
It’s the supermarkets own distribution centers that need sorting out, it’s absurd that it can take 3-4hrs to unload a delivery truck, the driver could have done another delivery in that time. I’ve been driving hgvs for 30yrs and I think the industry is crap and getting worse. The East European drivers have pushed down wages and their standard of driving is dreadful so if they’re going home then good riddance.
I’ve been driving lorries for 32 years and my CPC expires in October. I’m not prepared to pay to sit in a classroom for 35 hours in my own time to listen to the same old course I did 5 years ago. Most companies have driver trainers and if I need to know anything, I’ll talk to them.
Scrap the CPC and I’ll stay!
Dont forget IR35. Thats why the East Europeans decided to call it a day. Just 1 more restriction and rule. Take away the contractor status punish the driver more, treat them like something off thd bottom of your shoes. Hey ho driver shortage. Trouble is the rule makers dont see the grief that lorry drivers put up with on a daily basis.
I’ve been driving hgv since 1980 and when the cpc was introduced was when the problems started. The government won’t do away with it cause of the revenue they get from it. They stopped us parking in lay by on industrial estates abd wabt us to park in services at £25 or more for overnight parking. We’re treated like dirt and companies like Tesco in Litchfiekd take 4hrs to tip us. Do long hrs for wages that don’t match cost of living and miss our kids growing up when we’re away from home doing a job we love but don’t get the recognition for doing. If the whole Transport industry stopped for one week we’d bring this country to a halt and that’s why the continent treat there drivers with respect because they know what effect a strike would do to them. Give us better money and reduce the cost of fuel abd road tax so the haulage companies can do what they do best abd keep this country moving
I agree with most of your comment but hauliers themselves have caused sum of this with greed pay drivers peanuts while they run about in flash cars and some even say you can have a shiny truck full of bling but wage is only minimum rate ERM no thanks
Why is there no mention of the backlog of drivers who have applied for renewal of there have licence
Dvla currently as a waiting list of 10 weeks from application to receiving licence
You can not drive under section 88 unless you can prove dvla as received your renewal notice I am sat at home with no money or work because of the dvla mess
I do intend to sue them for loss of earnings
As A retired driver of 40 years we all knew this was due to awful pay and conditions. Nowhere to park overnight with decent facilities, money terrible, I would not reccomend to anyone. If the Gov want more drivers pay for training as they did in the 60s.Thats how I got my class one. Over 65 now not prepared to undergo training and medicals every year.
I stopped driving an HGV 5 years ago at age 50.
Too much legislation and its was always the drivers fault.
If you didn’t take a faulty truck out, then you were replaced by Eastern European crash test dummies.
Why anyone would want too be an HGV Driver these days beggars belief.
And now the Gov’t have ALLOWED (forced) the truck driver the pleasure of working even longer days.
Nowadays though, on the surface it looks as if it’s improving, don’t kid yourself, they’re USING the HGV driver until the Covid excuse has eased, then it’ll be back to normal, been stood on and abused for only just above minimum wage.
I would NEVER go back to driving, I earn as much now doing 40 hours, than I did working 60 hours as an HGV Driver.
Nothing to do with Brexit drivers are fed up with very poor wages I drive a truck at night £10.70 per hour for 55 hours a week absolute disgrace no wonder there’s a driver shortage.
I don’t think the general public realise what crap money we are on or the ridiculous hours we have to work, just to make a living
I am a hgv 1&2 driver but currently not working as am waiting for my licence to renew. Its been 2 months.I sent it for medical after 5 yearsAll agencies say they need updated licence to get a job. Now am doing Vans 3.5 tonnes. DVLA are not helping at all have been waiting for
my husband want to get his licance, but its a lot of money, and 6-8 weeks to get it, he still has to work. what we need is job offers (with appropriate contracts) to offer training to people with job security at the end of it. it seems so far, that you can only get your license paied through a company, if you are already working for them.
With driving licence B, C, D, T I’m working as cleaner, because I get more money per hour I’m losing because of work then most driving offer and without stress!
And this is the answer to problem: Make it worth!
Yesterday I was looking for funnies I ended on drivers work offers I had great laugh
CpC money making sceam for the government.when we did our test we went through all the rules.we doint need to listen to the same thing ever year and pay for it.And yes always the drivers falt .yes we need to join together and strike.scrap CpC free parking in the services more money treeted with respect and vosa of our back’s.if a fault is found on the truck then the company should pay the fine not the driver. And DVLA are a joke.This could all be sorted easily if the corrupt guverment stopt beaing so fucking greedy.
Been a hgv 1 driver 33 years as a tramper why is anybody going to want to join this industry i work upto 70 hours a week away all week money has always been poor with no social or home life treated like animals at delivery locations including the big supermarkets dirty ill maintaned facilities at services and so called truck stops with sum selling salmonella and chips as chefs special no respect from other road users not many plus points in this game anymore even your own works office hate drivers
Cpc is a scam pay is the same or less than a person who works in a supermarket on till no qualifications not forgetting Poland and Italy didn’t start cpc the same year as up as they weren’t ready nd they got away with it