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Aldi branch in Manchester: Driver shortage creates gaps on the shelves
Photo: Marius Becker / dpa
In the fight against the shortage of truck drivers in Great Britain, Aldi opens its wallet: The German retail giant is increasing wages.
The BBC reported, citing the Aldi website, that hourly wages are now between 14.15 to 15.34 pounds, and even between 16.98 and 18.41 pounds during night shifts.
According to information from the Sunday Times, another wage increase is imminent.
Aldi wanted to prevent drivers from being poached in the midst of the supply crisis triggered by Brexit and Corona.
Competitors also lure with advantages in the highly competitive driver market.
Tesco, for example, promises any truck driver who signs a contract before the end of September a bonus of £ 1,000.
Morrisons has set up a training program for truck drivers.
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The Road Haulage Association (RHA) estimates that up to 100,000 drivers are missing across the country. The shortage, which the association describes as "historic", was fueled by new Brexit rules such as the recently necessary work visas for EU citizens and the pandemic. In the past year, around 30,000 truck driver's license tests could not have been taken due to corona rules. Most recently, many drivers had to isolate themselves because of contact with corona infected people, and supermarket shelves across the country remained empty. But even before that, comparatively low pay and high training costs had caused problems.
The milk giant Arla, which supplies the leading supermarkets, had to cancel 600 deliveries a day last week due to the driver shortage.
"The supply chain is hindering our recovery from the corona crisis," said Rod McKenzie of the RHA.
"The government wants to leave it to the industry to solve the problem. However, it would be better if they granted short-term visas to foreign drivers while we tackle longer-term problems with driver training." Driver.
mik / dpa-AFX
