Head of a logistics company from Lithuania: "Even now, 80% of our drivers are from Belarus"

"From the beginning, we thought that if there weren't enough locals, we could invite Belarusians. For example, Lida is not far, it's quite a large city. We even planned to set up an office there," says Andrei Sabaleuski.

Павялічыць

His company was founded 20 years ago in the Šalčininkai district of Lithuania, which borders Belarus. Since then, Belarusians have been working for the company.

"Even now, Belarusians work for us. As online transport managers, they connect for day or night shifts. Young people are hired for these positions; they have a very strong desire to work.

The salary, with all bonuses and allowances, is approximately 2500 euros (Sabaleuski did not clarify whether this is before or after tax – "Salidarnasc"). The specifics of this job do not require any particular education, not even specialized. Personal qualities are valued more; the main thing, I believe, is responsibility.

Drivers (there are about a thousand of them in the company – "Salidarnasc") until a certain point, we mainly hired from Belarus as well. Even now, 80% of them work for us. Among the drivers, there are more than a hundred women. This is a lot. They work in crews together with men. There are even crews with two women.

We have our own driver training school, and when an employee arrives from abroad, we train them according to our specifics, showing and explaining the routes.

They earn different amounts. In continental Europe, for example, with all allowances and bonuses, one can earn 3000‑3300 euros per month. For those who drive in northern regions, Scandinavian countries, the rates are higher and the salary, accordingly, is 4000‑4200 euros per month."

The representative of the Lithuanian company explained why the number of Belarusians in their company is currently decreasing and who is replacing them.

"The professionalism of a driver as such is disappearing because the world is changing, cars are becoming easier to drive. Youth from Lithuania do not go into long-haul trucking. And the old guard of drivers is retiring. Therefore, the further we go, the more the shortage of drivers is felt. In Lithuania, this profession is disappearing. We are forced to hire employees from third countries. Until a certain time, these were mainly drivers from Belarus.

However, changes are occurring in the state's migration policy. And it often happens that our employees from Belarus, who previously worked in state organizations, are not having their residence permits extended.

Therefore, we started looking for drivers from other countries, currently Asian, specifically from India. We signed an agreement with a Philippine company, and the first Filipinos have started to appear. There are also drivers from Zimbabwe and Ghana."

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