Improving Attractiveness and Retention of Staff in Public Transport

Without staff, public transport cannot operate. This has become a pressing reality. Estimates suggest that that the next five years will add 2.2 million new jobs for bus and truck drivers. Yet today in Europe, already 10% of bus driver positions go unfilled, with surveys showing that drivers are both the hardest role to fill and the one most urgently needed.

This workforce shortage affects the whole public transport sector globally, which makes improving attractiveness and the retention of staff a top priority. And as a shared challenge, it’s important that we collaborate as a sector to highlight best practices ultimately reverse the trend. On this, UITP’s Business and Human Resources Committee has gathered data and best practices from over a dozen countries to explore the seriousness of this issue and showcase examples of how we may move forward together.

Informed by more than 20 examples and best practices shared from around the globe, this policy brief outlines six recommendations to increase staff retention and address the labour shortage:

1. Strengthen the human dimension in tenders
2. Improve the employee experience
3. Enable data-driven HR decision-making
4. Empower the sector with training capacity
5. Make authorities aware of the challenges in public transport
6. Enhance the positive contribution of industrial relations

Dive into the recommendations and discover 15 international case studies.

Download the Policy Brief!

Contents:

• Examples of the workforce shortage
  • VDV, Germany
  • UTP, France
  • Metro Lisboa, Portugal
  • TfL, United Kingdom
  • Prasarana, Malaysia
  • AC Transit, United States
  • Transdev, The Netherlands
• Factors that have led to the labour crisis
• 6 recommendations to address staff shortages and increase retention
• 15 good & best practices
  • Île-de-France Mobilités, France
  • Keolis
  • Mobility ADO, Mexico
  • UIMM, France
  • Metro Lisboa, Portugal
  • De Lijn & GIRO, Belgium
  • KVB, Germany
  • CTM, Cagliari, Italy
  • Finland
  • OC Transpo, Canada
  • VDV, Germany
  • Carris Metropolitano, Portugal
  • Clean Bus Europe Platform
  • FGC, Spain

Download the Policy Brief!

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