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Cloudy futures
Page 26
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MY HUSBAND AND I have been in the haulage game for 25 years or so and now we are middle-aged I have been reflecting on what will happen in the future.
Back in the 1980s when we advertised for drivers we had over 40 replies, but when we advertised recently we had more like six. Most wanted a brand new truck and a 40-hour week and the ones we did try... well, one didn't suit us and the other was simply using us as a bargaining tool to up his wages with his current employer. This, I think it's safe to say, is what happens when you have a shortage of drivers.
You have to wonder if small-sized firms and ownerdrivers will go the way of the dinosaurs in the coming years. What about those trying to start up? Free enterprise could go out the window and we'll be stuck with haulage being run by enormous companies with no considerations other than their bottom line. I sincerely hope not, as we have enjoyed the ups and downs of transport, the camaraderie of international work and the tall stories told in transport cafes. It would be a shame to see all this disappear. Linda Rood Alexander M Frood Haulage Tiptree