The Timber Packaging & Pallet Confederation (TIMCON) has called for
the government to help it address acute labour shortages across the UK.
In a letter to Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, TIMCON President
John Dye said a lack of staff in the pallet and packaging sector is
“impacting severely on the transportation of essential goods and other
UK supply chains, with delivery delays and…empty retail shelves.”
A continual supply of new repaired wooden pallets is vital to the supply
of categories such as food, drink, and pharmaceuticals, including Covid
vaccines.
The pallet and packaging sector employs workers from EU sources
including Latvia, Poland and Romania. Since the conclusion of Brexit on
January 1, availability from these countries has decreased dramatically,
which, added to staff shortages caused by COVID, is having a serious
impact on the industry’s production and repair capacity.
Dye called for the government to urgently roll out a solution like the
Seasonal Workers scheme, which allows the horticultural sector to
recruit from overseas on a temporary but regular basis.