The UK is in a state of logical disarray, business owners have said after the ONS revealed that the number of people employed as HGV drivers has fallen by 53,000 in four years.
According to a new report there has been a general decline in the number of HGV drivers working in the UK since 2016, with most of that decline coming in the previous two years, particularly during the coronavirus pandemic.
An estimated 268,000 people were employed as HGV drivers between July 2020 and June 2021. This is 39,000 fewer than the year ending June 2019 and 53,000 fewer than the peak for HGV driver employment, during the year ending June 2017 (321,000).
There has been a fall in the number of UK nationals employed as HGV drivers since the year ending June 2017. The number of EU nationals employed as HGV drivers increased between 2017 and 2020, but then decreased during the coronavirus pandemic.
The number of HGV drivers has generally declined since July 2016 to June 2017, with the largest decline over the four years was among those aged 46 to 55 years.
“State of logistical disarray”
Commenting on the new figures, Jez Lamb, founder of the Wirral-based craft beer marketplace, Beers @ No.42 said: “The shortage of HGV drivers is an absolute nightmare, and I suspect it’s only going to get worse.
“I’ve already had one of my suppliers put their account on hold as they simply haven’t got the drivers to deliver their products.
“As a business that relies on hauliers to receive goods and which also uses the courier network to deliver orders nationally, I’m being hit from both sides. Christmas without beer will not be a happy time.
“The country is currently in a state of logistical disarray.”
Lewis Shaw, founder of Mansfield-based independent mortgage broker, Shaw Financial Services added: “The HGV shortage is impacting almost everyone and everything and, by the look of things, is set to get worse. Whether the straw that broke the camel’s back was Covid or Brexit, we have known about this emerging crisis for a long time.
“Anyone with an ounce of common sense would know that if you restrict movement, put in trade barriers and generally make hard-working people feel unwelcome, a lot of them will decide they’re better off not being here at all.
“This government, continually lurching from one cock-up to another, has to be held to account for the complete and utter omnishambles it has created.”
Brexit
Last month the ONS confirmed that the shortage of lorry drivers can be primarily attributed to a lack of EU workers due to Covid and Brexit.
According to their statistics, one in four businesses are struggling to fill roles as a result of a sharp reduction in the supply of suitable applicants caused by EU workers leaving the UK.
This proportion rises to 46 per cent among transport and storage businesses, highlighting the acute hiring difficulties haulage firms are facing.
High migration levels have depleted labour supply for many sectors of the British economy, causing supply chain issues and shortages of products and raw materials.
Hospitality firms are experiencing the worst recruitment problems, with one in three saying vacancies are harder to fill compared to normal.
Excluding businesses with fewer than 10 employees, 41 per cent are struggling to fill vacancies, while 15 per cent of transport businesses are struggling more than usual to fill roles.
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