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Skills Shortages

The construction industry (namely services) is suffering from skills shortages without an apparent solution. There has been a flurry of press activity but not much action. How does the industry make itself more attractive to the younger generation? There are short training courses offered but these are not the solution and there are many mature people entering the industry on the promise of a quick buck. The majority of these (that I have encountered) have little passion for the industry and the quality of work can be quite poor. We don't want to end up in a situation whereby these guys are training the next generation.

I think that the apprentice schemes should be made easier for SME's to take part in. Many are small concerns and cannot commit to the burden. However, some of these owner operators have so much experience to offer and it's a shame to let the knowledge pass by. Perhaps the 'apprentice' could be in charge of his/her own portfolio and it to be made easier for them to jump between companies to gain their experience? The colleges could hold a register of approved organisations so that the system is not abused by people wanting cheap labour....

I have met youngsters that have been able to attend and pass the first year of college but unable to progress further because they cannot find companies interested in taking them on. How can this be so with the skills crisis? I presume the bureaucracy is putting off the SME's.

I would guess that other industries have similar issues?

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0 Andy Millar over 5 years ago

Hi Roy,

That sounds like a good scheme. Up until a couple of years ago I was involved with both employers' associations and education groups looking at (amongst other things) engineering apprenticeships in my local area and sadly nothing similar ever quite happened as far as I know. Everyone was enthusiastic about apprenticeships, school leavers wanted them, the FE colleges were highly supportive (as they would be), but it was phenomenally difficult to turn employers good intentions into real places. The management was effectively carried out by the FE colleges, who really didn't have the clout or the resources to do much more than keep phoning us employers up hoping that we might have a long term placement available.

Once again, whilst revitalising engineering apprenticeships is an excellent idea, it's not going to work in the same way it did 50 years ago when there were big paternalistic companies to support it. I think it's actually quite a challenge to work out how it can work - but certainly not impossible. My experience in our area was that engineering employers wanted apprentice trained staff available, and were very happy to commit some time and resource to supporting this, but (with a few honourable exceptions) could not cope (or did not believe they could cope) with a long term commitment. So using a management organisation seems like a really good idea - used cleverly it should also give apprentices a chance to experience several different organisations rather than potentially being "stuck in a rut" with one company.

I don't know how typical the south west peninsula is of the rest of the UK, but down here a "major engineering employer" (other than the construction industry) is one with over 100 staff. Most engineering companies have far fewer than that. Getting experience in these small companies can actually be very interesting and worthwhile for both the apprentice and employer if it can be managed.

Interesting.

Thanks, Andy
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0 Andy Millar over 5 years ago

Hi Roy,

That sounds like a good scheme. Up until a couple of years ago I was involved with both employers' associations and education groups looking at (amongst other things) engineering apprenticeships in my local area and sadly nothing similar ever quite happened as far as I know. Everyone was enthusiastic about apprenticeships, school leavers wanted them, the FE colleges were highly supportive (as they would be), but it was phenomenally difficult to turn employers good intentions into real places. The management was effectively carried out by the FE colleges, who really didn't have the clout or the resources to do much more than keep phoning us employers up hoping that we might have a long term placement available.

Once again, whilst revitalising engineering apprenticeships is an excellent idea, it's not going to work in the same way it did 50 years ago when there were big paternalistic companies to support it. I think it's actually quite a challenge to work out how it can work - but certainly not impossible. My experience in our area was that engineering employers wanted apprentice trained staff available, and were very happy to commit some time and resource to supporting this, but (with a few honourable exceptions) could not cope (or did not believe they could cope) with a long term commitment. So using a management organisation seems like a really good idea - used cleverly it should also give apprentices a chance to experience several different organisations rather than potentially being "stuck in a rut" with one company.

I don't know how typical the south west peninsula is of the rest of the UK, but down here a "major engineering employer" (other than the construction industry) is one with over 100 staff. Most engineering companies have far fewer than that. Getting experience in these small companies can actually be very interesting and worthwhile for both the apprentice and employer if it can be managed.

Interesting.

Thanks, Andy
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Skills Shortages

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