New survey assesses health of the sector

The National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA) is asking the sector for its insights on recruitment, training and wellbeing among its workers.

Its new HR survey has been launched to assess how dealerships are coping with key issues such as the apprenticeship levy, working from home, the gender pay gap as well as mental health.

Chief executive Sue Robinson said: “NFDA’s new HR survey will help us understand the most pressing issues facing franchised dealers in the employment sector and enable us to support members in a constructive and strategic way.”

It has asked dealerships questions around employee engagement and well-being, training and development, diversity, work-life balance, and recruitment, rewards and retention. The findings will be shared with members and analysed in more detail via the NFDA HR Working Group. This will help NFDA set its priorities and provide dealers with useful insights.

Robinson said: “The NFDA HR Working Group has been instrumental in allowing us to understand how to best support dealers and, in turn, it provides us with an ideal channel to share relevant guidance and updates with them.

“Dealerships have been working at a reduced capacity and employees have had to work ‘harder and smarter’ to adapt to the new requirements since reopening. With the increasing number of challenges facing the recruitment industry, it is vital that we continue to monitor how dealers are coping.

“The automotive retail sector employs over half a million people in the UK and staff represent dealers’ biggest asset. NFDA will continue to work closely with members to provide them with continued support both through our lobbying efforts as well as at an operational level.”