Over 50% of Roadworkers admit they are abused weekly - FACT!
Over 70% of Roadworkers admit they are abused every month - FACT!
And that's just the data we capture - which we know is grossly under reported.
That is just scratching the surface, recently through tie ups we have started to look at data from other sectors such as utilities and rail where the problem appears to be equally an issue.
But yet the prosecutions of those abusing our workforce are low, and by low I mean VERY low.
In this data we haven't even taken into account the recovery sector or indeed the traffic officers working on our strategic network.
Yet for years, despite as a sector knowing the issue exists, we have struggled to find a solution.
#Stampitout is an industry and indeed sector wide campaign and programme which seeks to make the abuse of our workforce socially unacceptable; in short the time has come to push back at the road using public and say enough is enough.
But in order to do this we need to do a number of things.
We all hear the annual calls around the state of our roads and the number of potholes but yet, as with many things we are reticent to offer a solution to stakeholders which they can truly grab hold of and indeed "run with".
#stampitOut is a programme which aims to provide solutions and education, in short we don't want to be seen to criticise but instead to educate.
To do this we must:
Understand the scale of the issue by empowering our workforce to report instances of abuse to industry leaders who can affect change, not just put it on social media.
Equip our people with adequate training to deal with flashpoint situations as and when they may occur, after all there is never going to be the utopia where we remove every worker from every worksite with any inherent risk.
Deliver a clear and concise zero tolerance message around abuse, whilst at the same time giving the customer a greater understanding of why roadworks are there and indeed the long term benefits of short term pain.
In our sector we lose 35% of those who enter within the first 5 years, and statistics show many, if not all, will never return.
Tesco spend millions of pounds annually training their workforce knowing full well well that their checkout operators will leave for a role with better pay, conditions or working hours.
Yet we sit here bemoaning a skills shortage in our sector, a 16 year old fresh out of school cannot stand on the back of an IPV in the way they could man a checkout. These people need training and that training costs money - serious money.
Yet we continue to invest money in a workforce we readily accept we will lose a third of within 5 years - a short term view at best.
In the UK we spend annually £40Bn training our workforce and yet, we are rapidly rumbling towards a massive skills shortage as a result of Brexit, Covid 19 and an economic downturn - the perfect storm.
Infrastructure has long been the catalyst for economic growth, but in order to deliver that growth, now, more than ever, we need to retain those we employ and that involves giving them the best possible protection.
For more information on the programme visit www.stampitout.uk