GoSkills Regional Contact:

www.goskills.org

Learning and Skills Council Contact:  chris.seabourne@lsc.gov.uk / simon.wigington@lsc.gov.uk

Click here for the GoSkills North East Fact Sheet

Overview of the Sector in the North East

The GoSkills footprint in the North East includes those employees working within the Bus and Coach, Taxi and private hire, Aviation, Water, Rail, Community transport and Driver training industries. Currently there are just over 33,000 people working within the sector, with bus and coach companies employing 35% of all transport employees in the North East. (Labour Force Survey 2006)

Industry	Employees	Percentage
Rail	2,700	8%
Bus/Coach	11,600	35%
Taxi	10,000	30%
Water	3,100	9%
Air	4,000	12%
DI	1,800	5%
Total	33,200	100%

(Source: Labour Force Survey 2006)

Passenger transport is crucial to the economic and social well-being of the UK, providing approximately 800,000 jobs and contributing over £30 billion to the UK economy (3% of GDP). In the region, growth in the sector is forecasted at 3% (2002-14).  There are around 700 workplaces of which over 90% have less than 50 employees. (Regional Sector Overview 2005 and Annual Business Inquiry 2005)

Research shows that there are few females working in the North East passenger transport sector (17%), however this is not uncommon for the passenger transport sector.  A mere 4% of employees are non-white and in 2006 the Labour Force Survey reported no non-whites working within the rail, bus and coach and driver training industry in the region. Only a third of all employees are under the age of 35 (32%) whilst 42% are over the age of 45. The industries attracting the most under 35’s are the aviation and the water industry with over 60% of their employees within this age banding. (Labour Force Survey 2006)

The proportion of the workforce with NVQ level 3 and above is 30%, slightly lower than is the case nationally (32%). (Labour Force Survey 2006)

Key issues facing the sector now and in the future

New legislation is imposing more regulation on the sector’s operators and workforce and there is a need to invest in providing better skilled people at operator level (drivers or cabin crew), but also at a supervisory and managerial level. (JC)

Age restrictions pose a barrier to young people seeking to enter the industry, with minimum age requirements in the bus and coach, taxi and private hire industries. By the time young people are old enough to enter the profession, many have already mapped out their career path and unless innovative steps are taken to address the issues of these age restrictions the industry will always suffer with a lack of young people.  Apprenticeships are a good method of addressing this issue. (JC)

New legislation is facing the sector through the introduction of the PCV Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC).   This will impact on new PCV drivers (after September 2008) and existing drivers will be required to undertake five days’ of training every five years in order to maintain their Driver’s Certificate of Professional Competence. (JC)

Without the relevant skills, employers can face many serious problems, the main ones being an increased workload for their other staff (88%) and difficulties meeting quality standards (75%). (JC from National Employers Skills Survey 2005)

Employment Issues in the North East

Current and forecast recruitment demand (either for growth or replacement)

Age: 42% are aged 45 years and above. (Labour Force Survey 2006)

A significant problem that the transport industry faces is an aging workforce. With a high proportion of the workforce near to retirement age, without new entrants to the sector there will be serious staffing problems within the next few years, exasperating the existing recruitment difficulties.  These will be made worse by the planned growth of City Regions and the underlying need for passenger transport to underpin all development and growth.

Retention issues

The industry suffers with some retention problems with 7% of UK companies citing retention as an issue. The sub sector with the biggest retention problems is the bus and coach industry (10% of companies having problems) and driver training had least retention difficulties with just 2% of companies having problems. (JC from Sector Skills Survey)

Attracting people into the sector

The image of the passenger transport industry is an important underlying issue; many see it as a career predominantly for men, and those in their later years of the working life. If the image is not changed to attract young people, females and ethnic minority groups then the passenger transports’ sector will continue to face problems with recruitment.

Recent recruitment of Eastern European drivers has proved very successful in dealing with the immediate shortfalls in the bus labour market, but in the longer term the sector will need to address the factors, such as inflexible and unsociable hours which are a barrier to some groups, in particular women, entering the workforce.

Salary and hours of work are very important factors to consider for some people when looking at different career paths. With many passenger transport jobs having a perceived low level of pay, and many having unsociable hours it is understandable why the industry does not attract itself to all kinds of people. Women may have are more likely to be child carers and shift patterns may present additional difficulties.

Skill requirements of new recruits

Many people are turned down for positions at passenger transport companies because they lack the required skills to do the job, if those people had gained the required skills through basic skill courses this would be a step in the right direction to dealing with the recruitment issue (JC from Labour Force Survey 2005)

Workforce Development in the North East

Skills shortages/gaps in existing workforce and latent skills issues, to include, where possible, detailed information relating to specific occupations and generic issues (e.g. relating to management and leadership; ICT etc)

It is vital that organisations fully understand customer needs in order to provide a quality service and to keep continued custom.  Staff will need to enhance their management skills in order to satisfy rising customer expectations.  Skills needed include; the ability to manage people, to manage information, work together with partner organisations and ensure customer needs are met.  (Regional Fact Sheet 2005)

One in seven companies (14%) in the North East reported a skills gap in 2005. Of those companies reporting a skill gap, the main three skills that need improving in the North East passenger transport companies are oral communication skills, customer handling skills, and general IT skills. The biggest impact of companies having skill gaps is that there is an increased workload for other staff (experienced by 88% of companies with a skill gap) and difficulties in meeting quality standards (75%). (National Employers Skills Survey 2005)

The main occupations where applicants lacked skills were in driver/operative and engineering/maintenance positions. (Regional Fact Sheet 2005)

By addressing skills gap within the passenger transport industries (which include communication skills and customer service skills) through training, employees within the passenger transport industry can offer the public a much better service, improve the image of the sector, and make it appealing. (JC)

Some 34% of North East passenger transport companies have vacancies, with 68% of these having hard to fill vacancies. The biggest reasons for positions having hard to fill vacancies is because there are not enough people interested in doing this kind of work, applicants lacking the required skills for the job and because the jobs entail unsociable hours. The main occupation which was hardest to fill was engineering/maintenance positions, although this is primarily of relevance to the bus and coach industry. (JM from National Employers Skills Survey 2005)

Skills for life

These skills are essential for any job role and include numeracy and literacy skills, basic IT skills and to some extent foreign language skills. If an employee possesses these ‘basic skills’ then they are well prepared to do their job with the added security of having these adaptable skills, which enable them to do or quickly pick up other roles within the company. This can benefits companies when staffs are absent from work and means that internal staffs are able to take advantage of promotion prospects. In some cases people lacking these basis skills can gain promotion through their experience or long service but this is increasingly rare.  Productivity may be affected if employees are unable to read instructions or fill in time sheets accurately.

There is the need to skill up people in the industry because with an aging workforce the next 10 years will see around a third of the workforce retiring (30%). Many people are turned down for positions at passenger transport companies because they lack the required skills to do the job, if those people had gained the required skills through basic skill courses this would be a step in the right direction to dealing with the recruitment issue. (JC from Labour Force Survey 2006)

Future skills demand

9% of companies currently face skill gaps, but 23% predict that in the future they will suffer with skill gaps; therefore it is important to address the current ones and be prepared for the future ones before they become a big issue. Current skill gaps include driving (4%) which is predicted to rise to 12% in the future. With the figure rising, it is important that driving instructors are properly trained in order to teach current and future employees driving skills and address the skill gaps that exist. Communication and Customer Service skills gaps currently exist and are also expected to rise.  Addressing Customer Service skills is necessary in an increasingly competitive environment.  Basic IT skills are currently a small problem but may still be hindering the process of bringing new technology into the workplace, which could affect the company’s performance either now or in the near future. (JC Sector Skills Survey)

Prioritisation of skills issues within the industries

There is the need to upskill people in the industry because an ageing workforce will mean that a third (30%) of the workforce will retire over the next 10 years. (JC from Labour Force Survey 2006)

It is especially important that sole traders do not lack any of the essential business as they are solely responsible for the success of their business. They are in charge of carrying out the actual job, sorting out wages and tax returns, advertising their business etc. The passenger transport sector is very heavily loaded with sole traders, so it is especially important we ensure they are fully skilled. (JC)

To enhance career progression within passenger transport, there needs to be cultural shift to recognise the importance of training, particularly in the softer skills such as customer service. This will help give a professional label to many of the industries within the GoSkills footprint.  Government agencies can promote this though initiatives to allow access to funding and promoting greater provision. Local authorities can promote the skills agenda through recognition of the importance of qualification when awarding contracts to transport firms. (JC)

 Management and Leadership

Within the passenger transport industry there is a culture of employees being promoted due to long service and commitment rather than them possessing particular skills. If managers do not have leadership skills or the appropriate training then they may not manage their staff well which can result in loss of respect from employees and create an atmosphere that is unpleasant. This can result in employees leaving the industry and criticising the way in which the industry works. Currently word of mouth is the strongest form of advertising in this industry. The NESS 2003 reveals that just 14% of companies in the NE provided supervisory training and 16% provided management training. (JC)

Learning and Skills Infrastructure in the North East

Over half (52%) of transport companies arranged training in the North East in the last 12 months, however many companies didn’t. Those that did arranged training did so in job specific training (74%), health and safety (59%), induction training (22%) and training in new technology (21%). (JC from National Employers Skills Survey 2003)

Only 15% of North East employers use FE for training compared to an average of 20% across England. However, all were satisfied (satisfied or very satisfied) with the training provided. (JC from National Employers Skills Survey 2005)

The region does not seem to have as serious a problem with training barriers as other parts of England.  Only 8% experienced problems with the lack of suitable courses in the area, compared with a 16% national average, and only 3% had experienced staff being unwilling to participate in training courses compared to the national average of 19%.  (RFS 2005)

Barriers to employers accessing the skills provision they need

Those that didn’t arrange training cited a lack of funding available (24%), lack of training available (17%), lack of suitable courses locally (14%), lack of suitable courses generally (14%) and lack of cover for training (11%). (JC from National Employers Skills Survey 2003)

Sole traders will especially suffer from barriers to training as it will be harder for them to find the money for the training course plus there is the cost of their lost income for the duration of the course. They would also have to take time off work to engage in training as there is no one else to cover for them, as well as finding time to do the course in the first place. (JC)

A greater proportion of firms within the regional sector than nationally reported no barriers to training.  A lower proportion within each category at the regional level reported barriers than the national level, particularly in areas such as having a lack of cover for training and unwillingness of staff to undergo training.  (Regional Fact Sheet 2005)

Best Practice

Are you aware of existing interventions that work well in addressing employment or skills needs in the sector?

The Commercial team have developed many training products in order to provide training to passenger transport employees. So far, a training DVD/video is available educating people in the bus and coach industry about disability awareness. This has already proved successful and a further training aid has become available specifically for buses and coaches in London. There are also several more training products available. For further details please see the GoSkills website.(JC)

GoSkills attend a number of conferences throughout the year at which they promote careers in the passenger transport sector. These are held at different locations around the UK; whilst some are generic others focus on a particular industry. (JC)

There is also the presence of Business Advisers in each regional area in England and the Nations.  Their job involves promoting GoSkills and liaising with employers concerning training needs and skill gaps. (JC)

*Data used from the Labour Force Survey 2006 is from Quarter 2 (Spring)