Low unemployment in UK forces grocer to recruit abroad
Tesco is bringing 140 Polish lorry drivers to the UK to make up for a shortfall in its distribution network. The retailer said it was forced into the situation by low levels of unemployment in the UK. The drivers will be recruited from Tesco's existing workforce in Poland, where the retailer has 69 stores.

The drivers will not be replacing UK workers, but are needed to maintain the increase in Tesco's workforce. A spokesman for the retailer said: 'Tesco creates more than 20,000 jobs worldwide every year and recruits from local communities wherever possible. However, unemployment in the UK is now so low that in some areas we are having difficulty filling vacancies. Like many businesses, we face a skills shortage, especially when trying to recruit truck drivers. That is why we decided to carry out this trial with our business in Poland.

'Obviously, the new staff will enjoy the same rates of pay and benefits as existing staff. It is a small trial when you consider we employ about 250,000 people, and we will not make any further decisions until we see how this goes.'

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