What can we expect from this year’s GLAD 2025?

The annual Global Lifting Awareness Day (GLAD) returns on Thursday 12 June 2025. With the theme ‘Lifting Careers, Building Futures’, GLAD 2025 is dedicated to tackling the growing skills shortages across the lifting industry, promoting practical tools to attract new talent and providing a launchpad to inspire the next generation to explore careers in lifting.

Throughout the day, LEEA and its industry partners will roll out a series of activities, resources and discussions designed to support employers. These will provide insights into recruitment best practices, apprenticeships, military resettlement programmes and effective interview techniques to help businesses attract and retain the best talent.

GLAD will be empowering job seekers by showcasing why the lifting industry is a fantastic career choice, career pathways, training opportunities and advice on how to enter and progress in the field. The day will also promote industry-wide engagement from business leaders to training providers to collaborate and invest in the workforce of tomorrow. We look forward to our industry coming together to share solutions and shape the future of lifting.

Can you talk us through the challenges facing the industry?

The lifting industry is at a crossroads. As experienced professionals retire and fewer young people enter the trade, companies are facing a recruitment crisis. A shortage of skilled labour is placing increasing pressure on operations, productivity and safety standards. Coupled with growing demands for technical compliance and innovation, the industry must act fast to secure a sustainable future. If left unaddressed, these challenges could have serious consequences for business continuity and sector-wide growth.

The lifting sector can be regarded as a hidden industry, yet it has a key role in the supply chains of industries as diverse as automotive, aeronautical, construction, defence, entertainment, green infrastructure, logistics, manufacturing, marine and shipping, medical facilities, military, oil and gas and ports.

In any of these sectors, if you want your supply chain to run smoothly, you need to pay attention to lifting and the broad list of roles within it, from crane operators to lifting inspectors, from lifting equipment designers to sales people, from health and safety specialists to trainers. The challenge of replenishing these skills is one that our industry must address together.

What solutions is GLAD 2025 offering to help solve recruitment and talent retainment challenges?

It starts with industry professionals, businesses and training providers joining the conversation on GLAD 2025 by sharing success stories, promoting career opportunities and engaging with the wealth of resources available. We are seeking to inspire the next generation to explore careers in lifting and aim to provide practical solutions to help businesses identify, develop and retain top talent. In addition to dealing with today’s challenges, we want to secure the industry’s future. By raising awareness of the diverse and rewarding careers available, GLAD will serve as a springboard for young people, career changers and underrepresented groups to explore opportunities in lifting.

What is LEEA doing to support GLAD 2025?

In March, we launched our ‘State of the Lifting Industry’ survey as part of our commitment to GLAD 2025. This in-depth study has now gathered insights from industry leaders and frontline professionals to paint a clear picture of the recruitment and skills development landscape. We are using the results to produce a special report, which will provide valuable insights into the challenges facing businesses today, as well as actionable strategies to ensure a sustainable and skilled workforce for the future.

For an exclusive reveal of our findings, I will be presenting a webinar, together with LEEA’s director of membership, Matt Barber, on 12 June, the day of GLAD. We will break down the data and explore the real-world implications for businesses. Whether it is for managing a workforce or shaping training programmes, these findings will provide the clarity needed to navigate the current talent shortfall.

We will share strategies to help companies attract, retain and upskill talent. Viewers can learn how leading organisations are responding to the crisis with innovative approaches to training, apprenticeships and internal career progression. The session will also offer fresh ideas and practical tools to address workforce challenges – ensuring teams are prepared not only for today’s demands but also tomorrow’s opportunities. Don’t forget to register to view the webinar.

What are your hopes and expectations for the lifting industry?

We will work to ensure the lifting industry is constantly recruiting new talent and new experts in the key roles that makes things happen throughout supply chains. In our specialised, safety critical industry, it is of paramount importance that we provide a recognised occupation and career progression pathway that not only encourages newcomers, but will also upskill existing personnel to develop their knowledge, skills and professional behaviours.

Growth in the lifting industry relies in large part on there being a supply of skills – and the right kind of skills. As the industry innovates and moves forward, improvements to practices, technology and new techniques demand appropriate associated training programmes.

Training creates sustained expertise for companies, which allows them to add enormous value to their customers. In addition to guidance, it inevitably nurtures best practice when it comes to working in safety. This is epitomised through the range of courses offered by LEEA, which learners can access through a variety of options.

This is vital as we continually strive to make lifting operations not only more efficient but also accident free. Our expectation is that this will come thorough raising standards in lifting operations globally.

Lifting will always be essential. Winning the argument for high quality practices and equipment in all supply chains, with members around the world united in the desire to make our industry safe, is a core aim for LEEA. We will continue our collaboration with global associations and organisations as part of a unified approach to safety and excellence in lifting.

LEEA

The Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA) is established across the globe as the leading representative body for all those involved in the lifting industry worldwide.

It is the respected and authoritative representative body for its members who work in every aspect of the industry, from design, manufacture, refurbishment and repair, through to the hire, maintenance and use of lifting equipment. The association has played a key role in this specialised field for over 80 years, from training and standards setting through to health and safety, the provision of technical and legal advice, and the development of examination and licensing systems.

LEEA represents its members at the highest levels across a range of both public and private bodies, including various government departments, as well as nationally and internationally recognised professional and technical institutions.