The Spanish authorities have announced that the country has decided to train and employ a group of Moroccan truck drivers in order to tackle the labour shortages in the transport sector.
Spain has been affected by an acute labour shortage in the last two years, and for this reason, the authorities have considered that it is right to apply more flexible rules when employing foreigners in the position of truck drivers, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
Reuters explained that the pilot programme to train and employ Moroccan truck drivers is one of the first to apply the new migration regulations of Spain and the same noted that the number of truck drivers that will benefit from this opportunity has yet to be determined.
It has been explained that the chosen drivers, who may be lorry as well as bus drivers, will begin their training in their country of origin – in this case in Morocco – and will complete it in Spain.
Regarding the work contract, it has been revealed that the chosen drivers who complete the training will get a work contract for at least a year. Moreover, it has been highlighted that the authorities aim to pick both men and women for this programme.
According to Reuters, irregular migration is one of the main problems between Spain and Morocco, and for this reason, Spain wants to mitigate the ongoing issues by recruiting nationals of Morocco.
Spain and Morocco have retained a programme of so-called ‘circular migration’ for years now. Under this programme, thousands of nationals of Morocco come to work in the agriculture sector of Spain, but they need to return to their homes once the season is over.
Even though the unemployment rate of Spain is high by European standards – at 12.87 per cent – it is believed that the Coronavirus pandemic encouraged more workers to enter the official sector. Consequently, formal employment in Spain has reached a record high, and the country’s GDP is nearing the pre-pandemic levels.
Last year, the Spanish authorities unfolded plans to hire more than 16,000 agricultural workers from Morocco.
The Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration of Spain said in September 2022 that under the migration programme of Collective Management of Hiring at Origin, the majority of Moroccans would be employed in the province of Huelva.
The same further revealed that the largest group, made up of 15,350 people, will be hired to harvest strawberries. Additionally, another 1,000 people for the 2022/2023 campaign will be employed to carry out tasks in the field in the provinces of Segovia and Albacete.