Many northern employers still suffering from skills shortages

In This Issue...
GOOD ENGINEERS

Wakefield
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According to the research, the biggest shortages are in manufacturing and operations (23%) and engineering (32%). The lack of the right skills can have a serious effect on business, with a quarter saying it leads to problems with on-time delivery and a fifth (21%) saying it affects the quality of their product or service.

The shortages don’t seem to be short-lived either, with half of the under-resourced companies saying they have been in that position for between one and three years and a quarter for over three years. When asked why they are unable to recruit the right staff, the majority (43%) stated this is because they either can’t find the right skills or can’t attract people with the appropriate skills.

Andy Tierney, Jonathan Lee Recruitment’s Regional Manager of Northern Operations, commented: “There is the perception that because of the economic downturn and inevitable redundancies, there is suddenly an increase in the number of engineering skills available to employers thus ending the skills shortage. Our research shows that the candidates on the market are not necessarily suitable for the jobs that are available. Engineering and manufacturing companies are still struggling to recruit specialist skilled people to meet their needs.

“Given that we still see the skills gap now, the long term concern is that the problem will worsen once recovery is underway because of the loss of engineers to other sectors and the reduced numbers of people choosing engineering as a career. The challenge for all of us is to use creative methods of retaining key personnel whilst increasing the profile of careers in engineering and manufacturing” concludes Andy.

The survey was carried out with 80 professionals responsible for recruitment in northern based engineering and manufacturing companies.

andy.tierney@jonlee.co.uk

Many northern employers still suffering from skills shortages

A survey carried out by Jonathan Lee Recruitment’s Wakefield office has found that a quarter of Northern based engineering and manufacturing companies (25%) are still struggling to recruit despite the recession and rising unemployment figures. The majority (53%) also say that the credit crunch has had no effect on the skills shortages.