Skills Gap in UK – 9/10 of employers say that they struggle with skills gaps

The UK is in the grip of a skills crisis that is affecting many of our industries and impacting productivity, growth and ultimately the bottom lines of businesses across the country. Our education system is simply not well aligned to the needs of industry and employer investment in skills development has not recovered since the 2008 recession.

Exacerbating the issue further, the jobs market is in one of the greatest states of flux we have seen for decades. Increasing globalisation and digitalisation, the introduction of Artificial Intelligence and the automation of many roles means that industries and jobs are changing incredibly quickly.

To understand the impact of these issues on UK plc we polled over 1,000 UK employers to find out how they are faring in terms of recruiting and training the skilled workers they need to thrive and uncover what challenges they see on the horizon. We also worked with economic modellers Emsi to consider the current state of the UK labour market and predict what it may look like in the coming years.

Results

• 9/10 of employers say that they struggle with skills gaps
• 47% of employers told us that skills gaps were the internal factor most likely to impact their future productivity
• 47% of employers told us that Brexit was the external factor most likely to impact their productivity in the future
• 1/5 employers told us that Brexit had already impacted their ability to recruit the skilled staff they need
• 2/3 of employers anticipate the skills gaps will stay the same or worsen
• 47% of employers struggle to recruit the leaders and managers their business needs
• 97% of employers intend to increase salaries in the next 3-5 years

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at People Power: Does the UK economy have the skilled people it needs for the future? | City & Guilds Group