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In the Petit Forestier development strategy, both in France and abroad, apprenticeships and training are clearly two factors for success and essential for sustainable deployment.
In France, we began applying this policy in 1997, when we opened our government-approved training centre in Villepinte.
Today, the purpose of the training centre is twofold.
Within the company, it provides skills management support for our employees by opening dedicated training so that each individual can develop to their full potential (as future foremen, branch managers, support functions, etc.).
It also provides youngsters with access to specific training modules and, through apprenticeship classes (Petit Forestier vehicle maintenance), high quality training with the chance of a job at the end of the course!
The policy, which is gradually revised every year, has encouraged others to follow suit.
In the UK for instance, the apprenticeship program started three years ago for the recruitment of qualified labour was awarded for the innovation and effectiveness of its approach by the most prestigious award in British transport – the Apprenticeship of the Year at the 29th Motor Transport Awards, in July 2014.
Despite the minimum threshold required to set up this type of program (number of branches, centralised structure, tutoring, etc.), we believe that other countries where we operate, such as Spain, Italy or Belgium, may in the medium term become natural candidates for apprenticeship programs to train qualified staff.