11/09/2006

Polish drivers get crash course

For the trainee bus drivers of Lublin it is an unusual introduction to their profession - episodes of Only Fools and Horses and copies of the Stoke Sentinel - but it has helped overcome a staff drought at Britain's biggest bus company.

FirstGroup revealed today that it employs 1,000 Polish drivers across its network and has set up a training base in the Lublin, south-east Poland.

Prospective employees take a crash course in regional dialects, with screenings of Only Fools and Horses for anyone taking charge of a London bus and Billy Connolly concerts for Glasgow-bound drivers.
Regional newspapers are also mandatory for getting to grip with UK postings: the Stoke Sentinel was the set text for two Polish drivers posted to the Potteries recently, with a DVD interview of Port Vale fan Robbie Williams thrown in to help master the local accent.

Alongside English lessons, drivers are also trained in the basics of "bus speak" so they are not thrown by typical questions such as "can I bring my dog on board?" or "how much is a return to the shops?"

A red double decker has been sent to Lublin to complete the authentic British driving experience under the supervision of a FirstGroup training team based in the city, although trainees have to drive on the right hand side of the road.

The Polish intake has helped tackle a staffing problem at FirstGroup because very few of the eastern European drivers quit within a year of joining - until recently a common problem across the bus industry.

Since the first Polish employee arrived in May 2004, the churn rate among the company's 20,000 drivers has fallen from 30% to 25%, which has helped inspire a turnaround at FirstGroup's British bus operation.

A recent report by MPs into privatisation of the bus industry warned that deregulation had failed, amid dwindling bus use outside of London.

FirstGroup revealed this morning that revenues at its UK bus operations rose 6% to £522m in the first half of the year thanks to a rise in customer numbers.

FirstGroup chief executive Moir Lockhead said the company would welcome more Polish staff: "I don't see why not. It is filling a gap. "They are good workers, there is no doubt about that. We have also got some good Polish technicians because we were finding it very difficult to recruit and train apprentices, so the top-up from Europe has been really good."

According to official statistics, 228,000 Poles have registered to live and work in Britain since Poland joined the EU two years ago, helping the Polish plumber pass into legend.

Other estimates suggest the real figure is closer 500,000, while Polish news magazine Polityka estimates that 1 million Poles have moved to the UK. Eight out of ten British-based Poles are under 34 years old.

Mr Lockhead said he was open to recruiting drivers from Romania and Bulgaria, which join the EU next year.

However, there is less likelihood of Del Boy appearing on TV screens at bus depots in Bucharest and Sofia after the government revealed plans to restrict Romanian and Bulgarian access to the British labour market.
Source:business.guardian.co.uk



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