The young talents at Albert Craiss GmbH & Co. KG started their vocational training yesterday in a smaller group than usual. Only two budding management assistants for freight forwarding and logistics services and one dual student for freight forwarding, transport and logistics will start their careers at the international logistics expert this autumn. Despite a sufficient number of applications, Craiss actively decided to reduce the number of trainees due to the current legal restrictions on contact in order to contain the corona pandemic. Nevertheless, it was not necessary for the newcomers to pass up on a classic induction day, including a tour of the company.
"For a long time, we weighed up whether and how many young people we could train this year, and we came to the decision that we could safely and adequately look after and train three young member of staff with a clear conscience," says Dirk Fuhrmann, Head of Human Resources at Albert Craiss GmbH & Co. KG. In view of the prescribed 1.5-metre minimum distance to be maintained in the office and the large number of employees who continue to work from home, the logistics service provider only has a limited capacity for training new specialists this year of the coronavirus, both in terms of space and personnel. "The youngsters will have to pick up a lot of learning content online and on the screen," says Fuhrmann.
Despite all the precautions, the two new trainees had an almost normal first day at work. After a welcome by the company management, there was a tour of the company headquarters and a small round of introductions and getting to know one another. The newcomers received general information about working hours, the vocational school and the current hygiene regulations. Further training courses, in which the 16 trainees from the previous years will also take part, will follow in the coming weeks. At the beginning of October, the dual student begins his bachelor's degree in freight forwarding, transport and logistics in collaboration with the Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University (DHBW).
The popular trainee exchange with the Craiss branches abroad in Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania has been put on ice for the time being. If the health situation permits, this should continue again next spring.
Fuhrmann does not fear a future decline in applications due to the coronavirus – on the contrary: "The statistics speak for themselves: far fewer trainees were hired this summer than in previous years. This means that the young people will now continue to go to school, so, in 2021, there will be a significantly larger number of candidates on the market."