trailer world Issue Two 2013

Industry professional drivers are older than 50 years of age. This group will, therefore, retire in the coming 10 to 15 years; the DSLV calculates that on average 25,000 drivers will be lost from the market per year. At the same time, about 7,000 young people are in training and 3,200 signed a training contract last year. Short or long term, there will be a large gap between supply and demand of employees. Professionals from foreign countries can help fill this gap. The crisis in Southern Eu- rope further aggravates this trend. Follow- ing this, about 70,000 people from the crisis states emigrated into Germany - more than into any other OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) state. In July 2012, for instance, most came from Italy, followed by Spain and Greece with a smaller share emigrating from Por- tugal. At the same the employment situa- tion for the migrants has improved here: be- tween 2008 and 2012 the employment quote for 15-64 year olds rose by 5 per cent. To make it possible for the Spanish driv- ers of the SVG to find their way at their new work place, the cooperative organised an intensive training programme. For eight weeks, the truckers from the Southern Spanish Motril took part in an integration and language course; additionally there was practical training for German roads that in- cluded fitting and removal of swap bodies and driver training on snow and ice. From this 13 Spanish drivers were able to be sup- plied to four Swabian logistics companies including Barth and Haller Logistik. “For us, it was important that we get peo- ple from Spain, who had already worked as professional drivers, in other words, brought professional experience with them”, Berthold Barth explained his motivation to take part in the scheme. To integrate the new employ- ees into his firm, each one received a sponsor from the company who would help them with the authorities and finding housing, among other things. “It is important that they like it here and can build a social network with their families”, says Barth. The “Spanisch Deutsche Personalver- mittlung” (Spanish-German personnel me- diation), founded this year by Heinrich Vo- gel and Etrasa, works similarly to this mediation project of the SVG. Here as well, unemployed drivers and haulage compa- nies looking for drivers can find each other. At the moment, there are four training ses- sions in Spain, each with 18 participants. In January, these will then come to Germany to their new employers. “Here in Germany, we take the job advertisements and require- ments of the firms and pass them on to our Spanish partners, who then look for the matching professional employees”, explains Katrin Geißler-Schmidt, publishing director for the publishing house Heinrich Vogel. In return, the firms are obliged to intensively look after their new Spanish employees. (ls) Diagram:Anne-KatrinGronewold,Photo:SVG The personnel mediation office is specialised on Spanish drivers Good for both sides: Spanish truckers find new employers in Germany. Left to right: Traugott Hasart, head of train- ing SVG Stuttgart; Ruiz Isidro, Fahrer; Rodriguez Ruiz, drivers; Werner Gockeln, managing director SVG-Zentrale; Uwe Nestel, managing director SVG Straßen- verkehrs-Genossenschaft Württemberg eG; Campos Canadas, driver. Internet page of the personnel mediator: www.lkw-fahrer-personalvermittlung.de 1/3 of all drivers are older than 50 years. On average 25,000drivers leave the employment market per year. 7,000 young people are in training at present. German employment market for professional drivers: Source: DSLV Issue Two 2013 17

trailer world Issue Two 2013

Pages