Apprenticeship levy wasted by businesses, says FTA

The BBC carried out research regarding the matter, which demonstrated the lack of support from employers who have struggled to use the money that was meant to train apprentices and to make the option of a career in haulage much more appealing to those who could initially have no interest in the role.
On behalf of the FTA, Head of Skills Policy Sally Gilson said: “As the business organisation representing the logistics sector, FTA needs the government to realise that the hundreds of millions of pounds in unused apprenticeship funding points towards a flaw in the current system.”
“Logistics businesses have now been paying into the apprenticeship levy for the past three years without suitable standards against which to draw down funding; as such, they are unable to use the funds to improve and expand their workforces, and the payments are essentially a secondary tax on an industry already operating on very slim margins. With the sector facing a ticking employment “time bomb” – 64% of transport and storage businesses are now facing severe labour shortages – the levy needs urgent reform to enable businesses to access this vital resource. According to FTA, the apprenticeship levy should be transformed into skills levy; this would allow previously unused funds to be utilised for more flexible training programmes.”
As questions continue to loom over the future of haulage, there are a wide range of topics to consider when appealing to a whole new generation of the workforce within haulage and logistics. Should companies invest more in offering training options with these resources, it is likely that younger people would have an interest in pursuing the career and considering the ways it could be beneficial for their career in the future.

Back to news