Once upon a time in 2004, I was involved with a project that eventually saw over 3,000 drivers recruited (mostly from Poland) to come to the UK and work for First Bus. My role was Senior Manager Strategic Recruitment, a made up title for a job that was equally made up as we went along.
We did, however, work on some basic human principles. All staff from overseas would get the same pay and conditions as everyone else. We would supply accommodation and support for all those who took the tough and courageous decision to leave their families and friends and start a new life in a new country and with a new employer.
It was a success. Turnover was low and the work ethic was excellent; good people who wanted to do a good job and send home the money they earned here. And that is what they did.
So fast forward to 2023 and the Confederation of Passenger Transport (CPT) asking the government to consider adding coach and bus drivers to the shortage occupations list, with a recent survey revealing that there is a UK-wide bus driver vacancy rate of 6.8%, and 14.6% for coach drivers.
Interestingly enough, the Home Office rebutted the request. It was, I thought, quite rude in its response by saying that it is not the job of the government to provide a source of workers to fill jobs with pay and conditions that are unattractive to UK residents.
Given some generous recent pay awards and some other really good incentives that have been introduced by operators around the UK, I find that hard to accept. Indeed, it is to me quite obvious that the government will not seek to help the industry, regardless of the justification of the case put forward by CPT and others.
The government has said that there are “no plans” to increase the number of skilled workers’ visas by including coach and bus drivers. So just what sort of vacancies are on the shortage occupations list? Well, I had a look and was somewhat surprised to see just which sectors and jobs are offered such visas.
Healthcare and care homes. Yes, I get that. Chemical scientists for the nuclear industry. Maybe. Very niche. IT business analysts. Programmers. OK. But some trades I found very surprising. For example, welders and archaeologists are both on the list.
Surprisingly, an expert from the University of Oxford Migration Observatory says that it is unlikely that coach and bus drivers will be added to the shortage occupations list as those roles do not meet the skill threshold. That begs the question: How much acquired skill is required to do some of the jobs already on the list?
I would also add that driving a coach or a bus carries the added weight that if a mistake is made, the driver has all those lives behind them. If you don’t weld a pipe correctly, hopefully it will not end up killing passengers.
So, with a heavy heart, I see the door slammed in the face of CPT. Party politics, of course, overrides common sense. Those 3,000 people who joined First Bus almost 20 years ago probably would not come now – unless they sailed from France in a small boat so that they can get a free trip to Rwanda, or a stay on a prison ship moored near Dorchester. Lord, give me strength.
About the author
Austin Birks joined the National Bus Company’s senior management training scheme in 1983, later working for FirstGroup. He now has other business interests and chairs CILT’s Bus and Coach Forum.
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