Driver shortage looms again as retirement wave edges closer

The haulage industry risks sliding back into the same critical driver shortage seen during the pandemic unless it tackles a looming retirement crisis, Driver Hire has warned.

Five years ago, empty supermarket shelves, delayed vaccine deliveries and fuel shortages made headlines. Only government incentives and bumper salaries helped ease the pressure. But the situation could soon repeat.

Driver Hire Training said 55% of today’s professional drivers are aged between 50 and 65. With retirement approaching and little interest from school leavers, a major skills shortage is looming, it warned.

John Keelan-Edwards, MD of Driver Hire Training, said: “There are several factors at play when we discuss why we are at risk of a shortage of HGV drivers again in the near future.

“We don’t have as many drivers from overseas as we once did so we are more reliant on ‘home-grown’ talent. Recent government initiatives have been useful, but professional driving as an industry still lacks diversity in a big way.

“And the average age of the current workforce is cause for concern – there is soon to be a wave of drivers retiring and leaving the industry.”

Keelan-Edwards added that temporary sign-on bonuses might be needed, but stressed longer-term action:

“For a sustainable and stable future for the logistics industry, we need more of the current school-age generation to enter the industry, and for them to know the fulfilling and varied careers they could have.

“There are many challenges in attracting younger people, but timing and image are two of the big ones.

“Many people will have already decided on a different career by the time they are able to do their HGV training and gain a professional driving qualification.

“People also now aspire to different career choices – the glamour of travel and the freedom of the open road are not what they may have been in the past.”

The RHA also recently forecast that 40,000 new HGV drivers will need to be recruited every year for the next five years. Their report warned: “Both the industry and government must ensure the right planning, forecasting and contingencies are in place to prevent future driver shortage crises.”