Future-Proofing Safety: Why Attracting Young Talent is Critical in an Aging Industry
Every August, International Youth Day celebrates the potential and creativity of young people.
By Dan Smith, COO of Nationwide Platforms
In powered access and construction, International Youth Day is a critical reminder that the future of our industry and the safety of those working in it depends on engaging the next generation.
The age profile of our workforce is changing rapidly as a significant portion of skilled professionals are nearing retirement. This shift presents the dual challenge of retaining decades of practical safety knowledge alongside replenishing our teams with fresh talent ready to operate in a modernised environment.
Why Safety Depends on the Next Generation
At Nationwide Platforms, safety is not a slogan. It is the backbone of our business and the foundation of trust with our customers. Every lift, every inspection, every job site is guided by one core value: making sure everyone gets home safely.
Seasoned professionals offer deep knowledge and invaluable experience, but it also means we are on borrowed time. As retirements rise, so does the threat of losing critical know-how. At the same time, the unfortunate physical realities of aging - slower reaction times, fatigue, and musculoskeletal issues - can make already hazardous jobs even more dangerous. The latest HSE data underlines how the rate of fatal injury increases with age. Workers aged 60-64 have a rate around twice the rate for all ages while workers aged 65 and over have a rate that is four times as high*. These findings underscore the importance of targeted interventions, including the implementation of structured mentorship and succession initiatives to ensure that key knowledge is passed down
This isn’t about replacing experienced staff with younger ones—it’s about creating a workforce with balance.
By combining the experience of seasoned professionals with the physical readiness and digital fluency of younger recruits, we create a more resilient team full of knowledge and fresh perspectives. Mentoring programmes allow knowledge to flow from one generation to the next, while also ensuring the physically demanding tasks are performed by those best equipped to handle them.
Training for Tomorrow
At Nationwide Platforms, we're embracing the digital native’s fluency in immersive technology by embedding new innovative safety education tools.
Our investment in virtual reality (VR) simulators is reshaping how we train people for high-risk environments, offering a more engaging and in-depth learning experience than traditional instruction. Operators experience realistic site conditions, including unexpected hazards without leaving the safety of our training centres. Many of these younger recruits also bring with them knowledge from newer degrees in computer technology and related fields, giving them a unique skillset that will help shape the safety systems of the future, particularly in areas like VR, AR, and AI. We’ve already found new operatives arrive on site more prepared for the realities of the job from VR training as they’ve had opportunity to tackle more challenging scenarios than they’d usually face in traditional training.
Our BlueSky range of award-winning safety features, including anti-crush systems, fall preventatives, and telematics-enabled platforms, also play a vital role in helping operators avoid danger in the first place. But technology is only effective when people are ready to embrace it, something the digital-native generation is well placed to do. That’s why Nationwide Platforms is continuously investing in apprenticeships and programmes with schools and colleges.
We showcase this technology during open days and outreach events, giving students and budding recruits a hands-on opportunity to try both physical equipment and the VR experience for themselves and discover the high level of precision and tech literacy the role demands. A recent partnership with Bridgewater College’s Arboriculture Department introduced Harness ON™ to the next generation of young professionals, in the hope that integrating the technology early in their career will make its use intuitive and keep more operatives safe.
Harness ON™ has already been installed across the company’s fleet of boom lifts at no additional cost to customers. Furthermore, the device is available in unbranded versions for industry competitors, underscoring Nationwide Platforms’ dedication to raise safety standards across the industry as a whole.
Bridging the Generational Divide
We’re also driving change by empowering more women to join the industry, like 25 year-old Jessica Taylor, one of three women who became a certified IPAF trainer with us in 2023 and now delivers IPAF training to delegates across the country. We’re proud to have created an environment which she describes as “intrinsically inclusive”, and her career is a great example of how the right support and mentorship can help women and young people thrive in powered access.
This cross-generational teamwork makes our culture more inclusive and forward-looking as we embed proactive safety habits, rather than reactive procedures.
Looking Ahead to a Safer, Smarter Future
The most successful companies in the next decade will be those that invest in people as much as in equipment. That means designing work environments suited to all ages, embedding lifelong learning, and making our sector appealing and accessible to young people from every background.
At Nationwide Platforms, we’re committed to leading that charge. Every young person we train, mentor, and empower brings us closer to an industry that’s safer by design. Apprenticeship programmes continue to be an important aspect of the learning and development goals of the business and our commitment to both upskilling fresh talent and the current workforce at any stage of their career.
A strong safety culture is not static, so this International Youth Day, we’re not just celebrating the next generation—we’re building with them. Because the best way to protect the people who built this industry is to invest in the people who will carry it forward.