The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (CILT) gives some early indications of how the newly established National Transport Forum will operate and the organisation is offering free membership to those who have lost their job in the sector.
National Logistics Forum formed
The importance of the logistics sector has often been overlooked, there is a presumption that it will always be there in the background, fulfilling its function. COVID-19 has led to the State recognising the importance of this sector by establishing the National Logistics Forum.
This Forum is comprised of both State and industry stakeholders, the purpose behind the grouping is to provide congestion relief for critical infrastructure to ensure a free flow of essential goods. It is intended that this Forum will identify issues particular to the industry and in so doing will be able through a collaborative approach provide solutions to same. This Forum conducted its initial meeting on Thursday 16th April last. The inaugural meeting of the Forum was attended by 13 people, representing different Associations and State bodies, and also had input from experts in the fields of logistics and trade. Initial meetings will be scoping exercises looking at the issues that are facing the sector in the hope of finding industry led solutions to same.
Mick Curran, CEO at the CILT who Chairs the Forum explains further: “It is hoped that this Forum will be more than a reaction to COVID-19 – it will grow, expand and become a thought leader in the area of logistics in Ireland. It will forge links with similar groups throughout Europe in order to bring best practice back to this State. This work is only possible through the support of individual stakeholders which is being given willingly.”
“While in the middle of the COVID-19 lockdown, the importance of certain sectors of society has come to the fore. The real heroes are not the celebrities, but rather the front line workers who, on a daily basis put their lives at risk to keep the rest of us safe.”
“The State’s response to COVID-19 is unprecedented and unparalleled, when we look around the world – our national response makes us proud to be Irish. We have seen State and private assistance going to our health services as well as 70,000 heroes volunteering to assist the health services,” he added.
“The State’s response to the front line workers has been exemplary, this response is now spreading to other sectors. When the lockdown was first announced, there was a degree of panic buying. We have all seen the images from other jurisdictions of frenzied stockpiling. After two days, this had abated. We discovered that though we are a small nation on the periphery of Europe, we have an amazingly resilient supply chain. This supply chain is made up of individuals and companies. In time of need, these individuals keep the supply chain moving. A chain is as strong as its weakest links, we have seen in recent weeks, that we have no weak links.”
Free membership to the Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport Ireland (CILT)
The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (CILT) is offering free membership to those who have lost their job in the transport and logistic sectors.
Mick Curran, CEO of the CILT explained about the offer: “We at CILT Ireland understand the difficult times we are currently experiencing. So many within the Supply Chain sector have recently experienced job losses. As a result, we would like to inform any individual within the Supply Chain sector that has unfortunately experienced a sudden job loss that we can offer free membership to the Institute. We are a strong and diverse community who support each other when needed, so now we want to offer a helping hand.”