Cardinal Logistics receives 2011 Skills
Highway Award

Auckland logistics and freight company Cardinal Logistics has won the Department of Labour’s Skills Highway Award for 2011 at the annual Equal
Employment Opportunities (EEO) Trust Work & Life Awards in Auckland. The award recognises employers who successfully boost employees’ reading, writing, maths and communications skills with workplace literacy training.

Cardinal Logistics – winners of the 2011 Skills Highway Award

“Cardinal Logistics are very deserving winners. In two years, they improved the foundation skills of their people – and, with that, team work, accuracy and company productivity,” says Jeremy Corban, head of policy and research at the Department of Labour. “Their staff are more confident, they go on to complete industry training in bigger numbers, and they take time off work less frequently – workplace literacy training had a big part to play.”

Research shows about four in every ten New Zealand employees have difficulties with reading, writing, maths and communication. “New Zealand’s poor adult literacy rates have long been considered a serious issue that costs businesses through accidents and injuries, high wastage, mistakes, missed deadlines and low productivity,” Mr Corban says.

The Department of Labour also congratulated Stevenson Group who were highly commended. Stevenson Group provides products and services to the quarrying, mining, engineering, infrastructure and construction markets. It also has significant agricultural and property interests.

“I encourage more organisations to follow the lead of Cardinal Logistics and Stevenson Group. Like all the award entrants, they help us learn about the positive impact workplace literacy training has on company productivity and operations, as well as the lives of individual employees,” Mr Corban says.

“Cardinal Logistics shows us how literacy training works well for small to medium enterprises with big growth ambitions. And we also know from Stevenson Group’s example that it can do a lot for large workplaces striving to continually achieve the highest standards in their field.”

For further information, visit www.skillshighway.govt.nz/ind