Tesco offers lorry drivers £1,000 joining bonus amid HGV crisis

The ongoing shortage of HGV drivers has seen supermarket shelves empty across the country, with Tesco recently revealing the shortage in drivers is resulting in forty-eight tonnes of food waste each week as fresh goods are being left to rot.

Now the supermarket has stepped up in its bid to entice more drivers to come forward, with a £1,000 joining bonus up for grabs.

Tesco will be offering the £1,000 incentive to recruits who join before September 30th.

@MyUsernameWasTaken / TripAdvisor

Similar recruitment incentives are also being offered by other companies for HGV drivers, it’s understood, with Morrisons saying it was working on training staff to become lorry drivers.

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) estimates there is currently a shortfall of up to 100,000 lorry drivers in the UK – and as well as this issue, the coronavirus pandemic and Brexit are also being blamed for shortages, The Mirror reports.

The Covid pandemic has seen travel become extremely restricted, with haulage companies saying their European drivers have simply decided not to return to the UK due to the virus and Brexit.

As well as food deliveries, there have also been issues with some council services, and several councils have been forced to halt services like garden waste collection, according to the chair of the Local Government Association, James Jamieson.

The environment spokesperson for the LGA, Darren Rodwell, said: “While most councils have been able to keep services running, some are having to reduce services such as green waste collection.

“These issues are partly due to the increase in ‘pinged’ staff but also a larger problem with a shortage of HGV drivers.

“The announcement that waste collection staff can apply for exemption is pleasing, but we are awaiting details on how quick the application process will be and whether it includes all waste collection staff.”