Fears supply collapse: Germany is running out of truck drivers

Fear of supply collapse
Germany are running out of truck drivers

A bad reputation and below-average wages: the job of a truck driver is anything but attractive in Germany. The head association of motorists warns that this could soon have serious consequences. The view of Great Britain is that of the future.

The Federal Association of Freight Transport, Logistics and Disposal (BGL) warns of a steadily increasing shortage of truck drivers in Germany. “Great Britain is simply a glimpse into the future,” said BGL chairman Dirk Engelhardt. There is currently a shortage of between 60,000 and 80,000 drivers in Germany, and 30,000 retirees every year – and that with annual numbers of between 13,000 and 17,000.

A BGL survey of around 4,500 truck drivers revealed three main reasons. “The first is obvious, that’s the reward,” said Engelhardt. Second, the industry’s bad reputation is problematic. And thirdly, the general conditions of the job are often difficult to bear: The poor predictability of traffic, the incompatibility of family and work and the lack of parking spaces make the job unattractive for many.

According to Engelhardt, there is a shortage of 40,000 truck parking spaces in Germany and more than 100,000 in Europe. In 2020, truck drivers earned an average of 14.21 euros per hour, according to the Federal Statistical Office. In the economy as a whole, the average gross hourly earnings for skilled workers was 19.97 euros, for semi-skilled workers 16.02 euros. Truck drivers received an average of 2623 euros gross per month; Employees with comparable training and professional experience, on the other hand, earned 3,286 euros.

Little chance of better wages

The general manager of the Federal Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics (DSLV), Frank Huster, criticized the low wages in the industry. “The wage developments do not keep up with the general price developments,” said Huster. The reason for this is the high competitive pressure. There is “extreme price pressure, especially from Eastern European transport companies that have a different social and wage structure”. Many freight forwarders would have to take this price pressure into account when calculating their wages – or, alternatively, forego operating their own fleet.

Third-party companies from Eastern Europe would then be commissioned. “That just leads to the fact that companies can not make the price jumps that they might want to make in order to pay their drivers better,” said Huster. “Because otherwise they would no longer be competitive on the market and would disappear from the market”. The United Service Union Verdi criticizes the working conditions of truck drivers, but sees little chance of pushing through wage increases. “There is no real prospect of good qualifications because the level of organization is actually relatively poor,” said the head of the Verdi specialist group for freight forwarding and logistics, Stefan Thyroke.

Engelhardt does not yet expect the driver shortage to have any noticeable effects on the range of products in supermarkets and retailers in 2021. “The companies will do pull-ups with their drivers so that our consumption can be satisfied normally,” said Engelhardt. If no massive countermeasures are taken, he firmly assumes “that we will have situations like the first corona wave in 2022 or 2023,” warned Engelhardt. Individual product ranges may then no longer be filled, and certain goods may no longer be available.

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