Job market figures fuel fresh call for upskilling scheme

The Government is being urged to redouble its efforts to get academia and business to forge closer ties to tackle the skills shortage on the back of new ONS figures which show the UK job market is spluttering along like an old banger.

The National Centre for Universities & Business (NCUB) – an independent and not-for-profit membership organisation that promotes, develops and supports both academia and UK businesses – is reiterating its call for greater intelligence on the labour market following the release of new figures showing vacancies are declining slowly, and have remained at a high level compared to previous years.

The ONS statistics also show the unemployment rate is higher than the same period last year.

NCUB chief executive Dr Joe Marshall said: “Even though the headline from new data published this morning reveals that vacancies are declining, they are declining slowly and remain historically high.

“What’s more, we are still grappling with persistent skills shortages. We are expecting skills shortages to get worse as demographic changes affect labour supply and as technology rapidly advances.

“The labour market is transforming at pace and the skills gaps will only become more and more acute. Our education providers are preparing people for jobs that may not yet exist, using techniques still unimaginable.”

Many argue that the rise of new tech, especially artificial intelligence, should focus the minds of both businesses and Government ministers, with the likes of generative AI, Google Analytics 4, and Web3 threatening to create a fresh skills gap across the majority of industries.

A recent Chartered Institute of Marketing study highlighted the complex environment marketers operate in. Worryingly, one in five respondents stated they feel they only have some of the required skills to successfully carry out their roles, while almost four-fifths believe the skill set required for the job has changed completely over the past decade.

While conceding there are no “quick fixes” Dr Marshall insists the Government has a critical role in coordination and making sure that there is clear intelligence on labour market needs.

He added: “Preparing for a completely transformed future labour market requires a suite of interventions with clearer coordination. NCUB has long called for improvements to intelligence and coordination.

“In 2024, we expect to see the first outputs of the new Department for Education Future Skills Unit, which we hope will provide much needed insight into future labour market needs. For this to work effectively, at its very heart, we will require collaboration between employers and educational institutions. This collaboration will be critical to aid long-term recovery.”