Training and temporary visa scheme for HGV drivers

"Shortages" and "supply chain issues" are words we’ve all become familiar with in recent months. We are seeing the tightest labour market since the REC began collecting data. Nine in 10 recruiters said that labour shortages were their main concern for the remainder of 2021, with two in three citing skills shortages as an area of major concern. We need the right people, with the right skills to fill our vacancies – we need to focus on upskilling our internal workforce, with training schemes and offers that are accessible and work for everyone. In times of need, we need to offer a realistic immigration route to those who can help us plug the gaps in those sectors experiencing particularly high vacancy rates. There’s also a role for industry, which must recognise the importance of staff satisfaction in order to encourage retention. If we are to solve this problem in the long-term, government and industry must work together to address it.  You can read more about our proposals here.

Over the weekend, things took a step in the right direction, with part of our campaign ask on immigration being addressed for the HGV sector. We welcome the significant improvement in the training offer for HGV drivers, as well as the small number of visas to bring drivers from overseas, though it is disappointing that the visa scheme is for such a short duration. And as with everything, the devil will be in the detail – below is a short summary of what we know so far but we’ll update this page as soon as we have more details about eligibility criteria, format, and application of the visas.

12 October 2021 - Update

Following up on the above, the Department for Education (DfE) has now published the tender for the HGV Drivers Skills Bootcamps (Call for competition contract(s) to provide increased HGV driver training and licences to create a pipeline of ‘road-ready’ individuals to fill vacancies in the road haulage industry). The time limit for receipt of tenders or requests to participate is 22 October 2021, so members are advised to look at it urgently.

Members are invited to join REC's roundtable for the drivers' sector this coming Thursday, 14 October (10am-11:30am) with a special focus on skills bootcamps with a representative of DfE to present on the topic and an update on IR35 changes by REC's legal team.

Please follow this link to sign up for the session and feel free to forward this invite to others in your organisation if you're unable to attend.

Training - new skills bootcamps

Skills Bootcamps are short training programmes (up to 16 weeks), delivered flexibly to adults aged 19 and over with a guaranteed interview for a vacancy with an employer. Following conversations on this topic with the REC, the Department for Education (DfE) is introducing HGV bootcamps which will train up to 3,000 HGV drivers on either a category C or category C+E licence. The courses will include all tests, licence acquisition costs, and the initial medical check.  Suppliers will engage with employers to secure interviews for their participants when their training is complete. The government intends to train another 1,000 drivers, funded through the adult education budget.

Tests will be available as soon as possible for participants who complete their training, as agreed by the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Driver and Vehicles Standards Agency (DVSA). The Ministry of Defence (MOD) will also deploy their Defence Driving Examiners (DDEs) to increase the country’s testing capacity.

Further to the announcement, the REC has received an update from DfE regarding a Prior Information Notice (PIN) for exercise to deliver these HGV skills bootcamps.

DfE is hosting a market engagement event on 30 September 2021 at 9am over MS Teams. Members are strongly advised to join that event. To take part, please email your full name, company name and job title to skills.bootcamps@education.gov.uk to register your interest. Registrations are limited to two attendees per company.

The REC welcomes this move which is aligned with our ask for a flexible training system that ensures candidates are work ready in a short period of time to meet the demand of the labour market. We stand ready to work with government to ensure this offer is fit for purpose and serves both candidates and employers.

HGV licence holders who left the industry

Government also announced that nearly 1 million thank you letters have been sent to HGV drivers, thanking drivers for their contribution over the last 18 months and encouraging those who have left the industry to return. The letter sets out the steps the road haulage sector is taking to improve the industry, including increased wages, flexible working, and fixed hours.

As we have mentioned in many of our communications and meetings with government, to ensure the industry is attractive to candidates, improvements in roadside facilities are a priority and should form part of the package.

Temporary visas for HGV drivers

Government also announced temporary visas for 5,000 HGV drivers, who will be able to come to the UK for 3 months in the run-up to Christmas, alongside a further 5,500 visas for poultry workers.

We are still waiting to hear more details from the Home Office about the format, eligibility criteria and sponsorship requirements (if any) for these visas and will update this blog once we know more.

While this announcement is a positive step, it’s disappointing that the visas offered will be such for a time-limited period, ending on 24 December 2021. We fully support plans to upskill our internal workforce, reducing our reliance on overseas labour, but our immigration system must also be able to adapt to the needs of the labour market. As well as the short-term nature of the visa scheme, we’re also concerned about the time it will take for these visas to be introduced, how employers can access someone with a visa, and whether European drivers will actually want to come to the UK, for such a brief period.