LSC Urges Logistics Employers to Deliver Training
February 6th 2006

Problems recruiting the right staff are running at double the national average in the East Midlands logistics sector with skills gaps commonplace throughout all levels of the industry. Now the Learning and Skills Council is funding a campaign to drive up the commitment to training amongst the region's 4600 logistics employers.

The Delivering Results LSC campaign urges employers to provide training in order to remain competitive and enjoy the business benefits that a skilled and motivated workforce can deliver.

Leicester distribution company, Alltruck, is supporting the campaign. The company's clear commitment to training its 100-strong workforce shows how it can work. Rather than losing talent to competitors, promising individuals have been carefully nurtured to grow and deliver results for the company.

Backing the campaign is the sector skills council, Skills for Logistics, which says there is an urgent need for SMEs to address both basic skills deficits and management skills gaps if they are to avoid a difficult future in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

Neville Royan, Regional Sector Skills Manager at the LSC, said: "Training your workforce is an investment in your company, and should be recognised as the essential business improvement tool it is, rather than a financial burden to be avoided.

"We need to move the logistics industry away from the idea that training is just a way of complying with mandatory requirements towards an understanding of the benefits of continuous professional development. The stark message is that you won't stay profitable for long if you rely on simply driving down costs."

The Delivering Results campaign is being rolled out through direct mail, media, partner events and online channels up until 31 March 2006 to generate training leads and support the LSC objective of increasing the percentage of employers providing training in the region from 49 percent to 65 percent.