There are around 5,580 logistic sector workplaces in the region which comprise 3% of all workplaces in the region. Road freight transport companies make up 57% of the sector. The majority of the workplaces are small to medium sized enterprises with 85% of workplaces employing 1-10 people, yet 58% of the workforce is employed in a working environment with 50 or more people.

The logistics sector in the region is one of the largest in the UK. It directly employs 68,900 people, accounting for 3% of the region’s workforce. When employees working within logistics but related to other sectors are included (for example, post workers, messengers and couriers), then logistics employs around 131,500 people, which represents 5% of all employment in the region.

The region’s logistics’ workforce profile follows:

• 65% are process plant and machine operatives and elementary staff
• 8 % of the workforce are self-employed, compared with 14% for the region as a whole
• 14% of the workforce is employed part-time, compared with 27% for the region as a whole
• 19% are women
• 2% are from minority ethnic groups
• 23% of the workforce is 55 years and over, compared with 18% of all sectors in the region. This older age group currently dominates road freight (16%) and storage and warehousing (16%)
• 12% of employees hold an NVQ Level 4 or above, compared with 11% of employees in UK logistics
• 14% of employees in the sector hold below NVQ Level 2 qualifications and 11% hold no qualifications

The region experiences sizable recruitment difficulties. In particular:

• 17% of firms have at least one vacancy
• 11% have at least one vacancy that is hard-to-fill
• 4% have a skills shortage vacancy

The two occupational areas with the hardest to fill vacancies are those for machine operatives and administrative staff

Employers have identified skills gaps within their workforce, with 20% reporting this to be an issue. Shift work/unsociable hours were identified by 27% of employers as the main reason for hard-to-fill vacancies, with 22% of employers identifying a general low number of applicants. A lack of technical/practical skills and communication skills were identified as lacking in applicants. Literacy, numeracy and customer handling skills were also notable problems in the region.

However, over the past 12 months:

• 35% of employers in the region did not fund or arrange any staff training;
• 53% formally assessed staff training needs
• 37% do not have a business plan, training plan or a budget for expenditure
• 15% of employers providing off-the-job training had used a Further Education college
• 5% of employers had apprentices funded through the Learning and Skills Council

Increase in demand for management roles is predicted. Transport and machine operatives will remain the largest sub-group. There will be a continued increase in demand for administrative, clerical and secretarial positions.

The proportion of women working in the sector is expected to increase by 3% over the next 10 years.

Source: Skills for Logistics - South West 2006