However, the terrain between the contours is a lot murkier. Critics who challenge the blanket notion of a skills crisis are quite right when they urge us to look in much greater detail at the nature of the shortage, and at why we often seem to have both unused skills and unfilled jobs. The answer is not just quantitative, but qualitative, too. This week, more than 6000 businesses nationally will be surveyed about their current and future skill needs. It asks about any recent difficulties employers have had filling positions.
Respondents can complete and lodge the survey on paper, or on the Web.
The website service for respondents is an important innovation, to encourage completion of the survey. For the first time, the supply of skills is also being assessed. The survey provides employers who complete it with a snapshot of their current and projected skill needs. This is an invaluable tool for HR planning, enabling employers to assess and address skill needs before they arise. The lack of these skills is holding the industry back.