This industry is known as the ‘logistics’ industry – it manages the flow of goods and other resources, including mail and people, from one place to another.

If you like organising and planning, and want to work in a job that is necessary to the daily needs of customers and keeping business moving, then transport and distribution may be the right career for you.

The transport and storage industry is vital to the UK economy, running 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days in the year.

What areas can I work in?

You can work in one of five areas.

• Distribution handles goods in storage before they are sent out, while they are being moved and after they arrive.
• Air transport includes jobs in the air but also on the ground.
• Train companies run passenger and goods services all over the UK and through the Channel Tunnel to Europe.
• Road transport carries passengers and goods.
• Sea transport includes ferries, cruise liners and Merchant Navy vessels.

What kind of companies can I work for?

There are a wide variety of companies to choose from including:

• airline companies and airports
• warehousing and distribution centres
• the Merchant Navy
• passenger cruise and ferry companies
• train, bus and taxi firms
• freight forwarding and logistics companies.

What’s the job market like?

The transportation and storage industry employs 1,749,000 people, of which 116,000 are in Scotland, accounting for 4.3% of the Scottish workforce.

In Scotland, over the last five years there has been an increase in air (29.8%), rail (17.4%) and ferry (5.7%) passenger numbers, indicating that these areas of the passenger transport industry are healthy.
Although there is a lot of uncertainty caused by Brexit for the logistics industry, a report from the Freight Transport Association (FTA) finds that three quarters of logistics companies believe that their business will grow over the next three years. 

There is reported to be an increasing driver shortage in the transport and logistics sector, with one in five logistics operators expecting a decrease in staff over the next 12 months. This is partly due to Brexit and EU nationals choosing not to move to the UK and the lack of trained workers to replace an ageing workforce. As such, more vacancies in the future are highly likely.

In 2018, there were an estimated 25,740 UK seafarers, 8% more than the previous year, mainly due to an increase in the number of ratings. The numbers of certified officers, cadet officers and uncertified offers all fell.

Facts and figures

• The aviation sector employs around 220,000 workers directly.
• Around 95% of British imports and exports in goods are moved by sea.
• Only 4% of UK certified officers active at sea are female.
• The UK rail industry employs more than 190,000 people.
• Edinburgh is Scotland’s busiest airport with 14,294,305 terminal and transit passengers in 2018, followed by Glasgow (9,656,227) and Aberdeen (3,056,018).
• Bus passenger journeys make up over two thirds of all public transport usage.

Want to find out more?

The People1st-run website, Careers that Move, provides information and case studies on working in the transport and travel industries.

Sources

• Workforce jobs by industry section, Nomis Labour Market Profile (March 2019)
• Scottish Transport Statistics No 37 2018 Edition, Transport Scotland
• FTA Logistics Update, Freight Transport Association (2018)
• Impacts on the transport sector in 2019, Richard Lilwall, Fleet News (18 December 2018)
• Seafarers in the UK Shipping Industry 2018, Department for Transport (12 December 2018)
• The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport website
• Maritime 2050: Navigating the Future, Department for Transport (January 2019)
• Terminal and Transit Passengers 2018, Civil Aviation Authority Airport Data