On a warehouse visit to UKWA member ILG (International Logistics Group) in her constituency last week, Minister for Employment Mims Davies was enthusiastic in her praise of the warehousing and logistics sector for the vital work they undertook during the global pandemic and the great services they continue to provide, encouraging people to ‘join such a brilliant sector’.
The visit to ILG’s East Grinstead site, which coincided with the DWP’s (Department of Work & Pensions) announcement of the latest jobs figures, was initiated by UKWA CEO Clare Bottle, who has also secured the Minister as a speaker at the UKWA National Conference next month (March 8-9).
The UKWA reports Davies was keen to learn more about the industry, the opportunities available in the sector for young people, and its contribution to the UK economy. During her tour of the warehouse, she spoke particularly with employees who had joined as Apprentices or been through the Government’s Kickstart scheme.
“It’s been brilliant to hear all about warehousing and logistics, and what a great career it can be,” she said. “There are incredible roles across the sector – you’re helping the UK economy every single day, making sure the products people need arrive in their homes. To those thinking about joining this brilliant sector, I’d say talk to people in it, talk to UK Warehousing Association and you’ll find it’s a great place to be!”
Commenting on the Minister’s visit, Clare Bottle said: “It was fantastic to hear the genuine interest in warehousing from Mims Davies and her passion for helping young people into work. Mims was the Minister responsible for developing and rolling out the Kickstart scheme, which was strongly supported by UKWA, and she will be sharing further details of the latest support available from Government with delegates at our National Conference in March, where the theme will be Building Tomorrow’s Workforce Today.”
The conference theme reflects the concerns of UKWA members, who cited in a recent survey labour and skills shortages as their number one concern for 2022.
Mims Davies will be joining an impressive lineup of speakers from across the industry, together with Chris Southworth, director general at ICC (International Chamber of Commerce), consultants Eleanor Winton and Gwynne Richards, and senior figures from Boohoo Group, Reckitt, Nestle, FitFlop and CocaCola.
