'Huge dilemma' on skill shortages

The leading professional institute for the HR and personnel sector has argued that its predicted increase in employment levels presents a 'huge dilemma' to UK organisations - and suggests that a greater use of the immigrant workforce will have to be used 'to meet the challenge'.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) predicts that employment levels will rise by 250,000 and the CIPD argues that this presents a huge dilemma to UK organisations who are already experiencing severe recruitment difficulties - either they will have to use under-used sources of labour, such as immigrants or jobless people, or face wage costs increases next year.

Meet the challenge

John Philpott, the CIPD's Chief Economist, said: "The self-employed and the public sector are likely to be the biggest winners of the jobs increase next year. While this is undoubtedly good news for business and users of public services, it promises to present an even greater challenge to public sector HR managers who already report recruitment difficulties.

"To meet the challenge, UK organisations should tap into under-used sources of labour - immigrants as well as jobless people, or indeed raise productivity by improving skills in the workplace, to avoid a hike in wage costs in 2004."

Philpott argues that the more balanced pattern of economic growth will also favour job creation in business services and manufacturing, although it remains doubtful in the case of the latter whether the net effect will be positive.

The CIPD claims the research confirms that the recruitment and retention of skilled staff remains HR's biggest challenge. Nine out of 10 organisations attempting to fill vacancies reported difficulties in 2003 - a sharp increase on the 2002 figure of three quarters - with almost three quarters also reporting retention difficulties. The most common reasons for recruitment difficulty are skill shortages and finding applicants with suitable experience (cited by 54% of organisations).

CIPD

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has over 118,000 members and is the leading professional institute for those involved in the management and development of people.

More information about the CIPD is available on its website.

UKTECH comment

Last year, trade unions and other pressure groups argued loudly but without significant supporting evidence or alternatives that the outsourcing of jobs together with the importation of workers would have a detrimental effect on the long-term prospects of the UK economy.

Freelancers and other specialist knowledge-based workers have repeatedly come forward with individual examples of highly skilled people who were unable to find employment or contract work.

Throughout all of this, the Government has maintained a consistent position that it would not act in any protectionist manner regarding the movement of jobs and labour. And has frequently gone as far as promoting this policy of economic migration as vital to the competitiveness of the UK economy.

Many freelancers are frustrated at the gap they see between the rhetoric of some organisations who claim they are unable to meet their requirements for skilled workforce and what highly skilled freelancers are experiencing personally. Reports such as this from the CIPD will be cited in evidence of the gap between the skills needed and the skills available.

Any organisation seeking to oppose this current policy must now be feeling like King Canute with an advancing tide, particularly on the back of reports such as this which claim UK organisations are on the brink of a 'huge dilemma' and cite the solution as an alternative between immigrant workers, the jobless or huge wage hikes.