Truck drivers and representatives of the profession warned of their deplorable working conditions at a meeting organised by the EPP on Wednesday 26 April. They call for a faster implementation of the mobility package (see EUROPE 12895/13) and are concerned about the lack of attractiveness of the profession for women and younger generations.
Maciej Wronski, President of the Association of Employers in the Polish transport and logistics sector, explained that there is currently a shortage of between 400,000 and 500,000 drivers. “We should have 1.5 drivers per vehicle, today we have one or even less”, he said. This shortage of labour in the market explains the increase in wages and employers offering flexible working arrangements. But between occupational illnesses and working conditions, there are fewer and fewer lorry drivers and they are not being replaced.
Iwona Blecharczyk, a truck driver for 12 years and CEO of Imagination Transport, conducted a survey of over 60,000 other drivers across Europe. According to the survey, 66% of them have considered leaving their job because of the working conditions. Germany, France and Belgium are the countries with the worst rest conditions.
Ms Blecharczyk described humiliating working conditions: difficulties in accessing sanitary facilities, unhygienic and dirty toilets, noise pollution at rest areas, insecurity and lack of consideration by the authorities in the event of fuel theft. The drivers have had enough, she said.
Dagmara Trusewicz, CEO of logistics company Boekestijn Transport Services, presented the results of another report on the difficult conditions in loading and unloading areas. In addition to the difficulties of access to hygiene, the loading/unloading phase is also a problem. Half of the dedicated areas do not offer enough parking spaces and their waiting time is too long, sometimes up to 10 hours. “There is a structural and infrastructure deficit that can be addressed by the higher authorities [...], we need the help of the European Commission to implement the legislation”, she said.
For Elżbieta Łukacijewska (EPP, Polish), who worked on the mobility package, the priority is to make the sector more welcoming to women and the younger generation. Marian-Jean Marinescu (EPP, Romanian) hopes for clear proposals from the Commission.
The representative of the Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE) replied that not all provisions have been implemented by the Member States yet, as the mobility package has only been applicable since last year. Regarding parking spaces, she explained that tenders are underway and that European funds will be dedicated to this matter. “New infrastructures have been funded and modernised, a lot still needs to be done”, she agreed. (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)