Many truckers who work for Dutch firms come from eastern Europe, but are often denied salaries in line with their Dutch colleagues, according to trade union federation FNV. Some companies use complicated cross-border constructions to get round the Dutch pay scales. In July, for example, a Dutch transport company was ordered to give 10 Hungarian lorry drivers back pay which could run into hundreds of thousands of euros for failing to pay them a salary in line with Dutch requirements.
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n the UK, where the shortage is much more serious, just 27 people have applied so far for one of 300 visas set aside for lorry drivers to deliver fuel to petrol stations, the Times reported on Tuesday.