The British economy is in a supply chain crisis, and the inventory levels of major retailers are at their lowest level since 1983. This is due to the shortage of workers and the interruption of transportation caused by Covid and the epidemic. Brexit.
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said that inventory levels related to expected sales fell in August to the lowest level since it started tracking retail trends nearly four years ago, indicating that recovery from the pandemic may be at risk.
It attributed the global supply chain disruption to the pandemic and the shortage of workers in several key industrial sectors, as well as the interruption of Brexit as the United Kingdom got rid of the blockade.
Andrew Sundance, a former member of the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee, said that the shortage of workers and materials was the worst in decades and painted a worrying picture for the British economy.
“It’s very amazing, I don’t think we can regard this as a flash in the pan,” he said. “Now that the blockade has been relaxed, we are seeing a more true reflection of the impact of Brexit and the problems that have accumulated before the pandemic.
“We can see that this situation lasts longer than people expected. The skills shortage may last for several years. The impact of Brexit on our ability to attract workers from the EU will not disappear anytime soon, and when people are out of work And on vacation, the pandemic severely disrupted the training process.”
Employers scrambled to hire workers. The job site Indeed stated that from April to August 20, the number of job advertisements offering franchise bonuses increased by 66%, and most of the increase has been since July, as the economy reopened after the lockdown.
Amazon said it will offer up to £1,000 to join bonuses at multiple sites in the UK to attract new long-term and seasonal workers. Other warehousing, transportation and logistics companies, such as DHL and Whistl, have similar plans.
Specsavers said that the labor shortage has spread from logistics to other departments, which indicates that it will pay up to £10,000 for optometrists in some of its locations, £3,000 for natural gas engineers for British Gas, and G4S for security personnel and The management staff paid a fee of £500. .
Pets at Home provides warehouse employees with a £1,000 signing bonus and a £500 Ocado bonus for new warehouse workers and delivery drivers. AO.com hopes to attract “night movers” to help load and unload trailers in its warehouses-by providing A £1,000 franchise bonus until Christmas.
Although only 0.5% of job advertisements mention bonuses, Indeed said that this surge shows that more employers are using bonuses to gain a lead in employee competition.
The shortage of truck drivers and food processing factory workers across the country has caused disruptions in food stores and empty supermarket shelves.
McDonald’s was forced to remove milkshakes and bottled beverages from the menuDue to the shortage of chicken wings, Nando’s announced the temporary closure of 45 stores.
“When you hear about supply chain issues related to the shortage of truck drivers, the anecdotal evidence is not very reassuring. It means that McDonald’s ran out of milkshakes and Nando ran out of chicken. It’s a bit disturbing,” Sentance said.
Business leaders and employment experts say that the Covid disruption that affects countries around the world has played a role in worker and material shortages, but the UK has been particularly affected after the introduction of stricter immigration rules after Brexit.
According to CBI’s latest snapshot, the proportion of imported deliveries from suppliers has fallen at one of the fastest rates in survey history, reflecting the disruption of international trade.
It said that supply shortages from retail companies have hit grocery stores the hardest, and wholesale suppliers of building materials, household goods and office machinery are also struggling with low inventory levels.
Business surveys revealed that several other countries, including the United States, Germany, and New Zealand, had supply chain disruptions and staff shortages. Toyota said last week that it will cut global production by 40% due to global shortages of microchips and other components.
Director General of Andrew Kuyk Supply Trade FederationThe representative of the dairy and pork trade said that there is no shortage of agricultural products on British farms, and the blanks on the shelves are the result of shortage of employees and difficulties in the supply chain.
“Food is still produced on farms and factories, but getting it to consumers is justifying this challenge in many different ways. There is a lack of truck drivers, warehouse staff, retail distribution center staff, and supermarket staff to put it on the shelves,” He said.
“Our supply chain is very complex, with a lot of different moving parts. It’s a bit like a watch mechanism, as long as all these parts are there and functioning properly with each other, it will work.
“But if you take out a gear, then the entire mechanism will be eliminated, especially for fresh products, there is a time issue.”
Official data shows that millions of workers have taken leave in recent months as the economy reopened, unemployment rates fell and job vacancies reached record highs.
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Nevertheless, according to the latest data from HMRC, as of the end of June, nearly 2 million jobs were still on vacation. Economists predict that once the program ends at the end of September, the unemployment rate may rise.
It appears in Companies are hit by the “plague” of employee absenteeism Earlier this summer, the increase in coronavirus infections and the NHS Covid app alerted people, forcing hundreds of thousands of workers to self-isolate, leading to widespread damage to the entire economy.
Alpesh Paleja, chief economist at CBI, said the changes to self-isolation rules earlier this month have eased the pressure on companies.
“But ensuring continued progress in launching vaccines for young people is critical. As we enter a new phase of the pandemic, coexisting with the virus, this will also increase confidence,” he said.
