The lack of professional drivers drives the Alfred Schuon GmbH to a creative initiative: In order to inspire young graduates, especially for the job in the cab, the forwarding company starts from September 2019 with the 2plus2 concept, a new, combined training offer. The young people initially complete the regular two-year apprenticeship as a warehouse specialist and can then train as a professional driver in two years instead of three.
“Many students are only 15 years old when they leave secondary school. An apprenticeship as a professional driver, however, they can only begin at the age of 17. In order to avoid losing interested young people as potential candidates for the driver’s job because of their age, we have developed the new training model,” says Martin Birkle, Training Manager at Alfred Schuon GmbH.
Not only does the concept enable students to start their apprenticeship at the age of 15, but it also allows them to receive two recognized professional qualifications within four years. It combines the lessons of specialist warehouse operators and professional drivers, whereby the latter is reduced by one year of the usual training period.
In addition to saving time, the assumption of the costs for the car and truck driver’s license should also create incentives. In addition, the apprentices are even remunerated during the training with the salary of a learned driver, as soon as they are traveling independently.
The reason for the unusual model is the industry-wide shortage of skilled workers. “We need these junior staff”, emphasizes Martin Birkle the need for a rethink in the design of the courses. The Swabian forwarding company currently employs three prospective professional drivers – in total 6 apprentices can be trained per year.
“The profession of motorist is far from underestimated. Everyone orders online and wants to get their packages delivered on time, but no one sees the titanic challenge behind it,” explains Martin Birkle.
The new training concept offers even more options: Those who do not want to take the wheel of a truck after completing their apprenticeship as a warehouse clerk can take up training as a specialist in warehouse logistics within a further year or continue their work as a warehouse clerk.
Alfred Schuon GmbH is a leading forwarding and logistics service provider specializing in jumbo transports, system transports and individual logistics concepts. With 500 employees, 330 scheduled vehicles, around 66,000 m² of storage and logistics space, as well as branches in Germany, Italy and Hungary, the company creates added value and decisive competitive advantages for its customers. The roots of Alfrd Schuon GmbH lie at the headquarters in Haiterbach, Baden-Württemberg, while the area of application extends to the whole of Europe.
