FMJ Facilities Management magazine providing industry-specific intelligence to FM and property professionals
Industry survey reveals electrotechnical and engineering services businesses continue to struggle with finding suitably qualified candidates to fill vacancies in their organisations.
The latest quarterly Building Engineering Business Survey, carried out by ECA in partnership with BESA, SELECT and SNIPEF, found that of the 125 businesses surveyed, almost half (46 per cent) are currently looking to fill vacancies in their organisations. Of those respondents, half (47 per cent) said that candidate pay expectations are too high, and 46 per cent said applicants consistently lack sufficient knowledge or skills for the job.
One respondent commented: “Potential electrical apprentices are encouraged to stay on at school. Youngsters coming into the industry struggle to cope with the academics of the electrical courses, and consequently leave.”
Another said: “One of the biggest problems is that applicants are not as skilled as they think they are. In some cases, they are nowhere near where they should be.”
Considering these findings, ECA has welcomed recent comments from Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson MP encouraging more young people to consider apprenticeships as a viable alternative to university.
ECA Chief Operating Officer Andrew Eldred said: “ECA welcomes the Education Secretary’s ambition to see more young people qualify as electricians.
“For her statements to have any sort of impact, her government must work closely with industry leaders, educators and business owners – to listen to electricians themselves about what to do to make this happen.”
Earlier this month, ECA launched the Electrical Skills Index, which illustrates the national shortage of electricians in England.
Eldred added: “Of the parts of England where electrical apprentice starts are too low, the vast majority are now represented by Labour MPs. Key Labour Government missions such as new housing and net zero will not succeed without taking steps to address these shortfalls at both national and local levels.”
Frontline workers form the backbone of facilities management services, serving as the face of the brand and interacting directly with customers. Yet research by both L&G and the Living Wage Foundation reveals the majority feel overlooked and expendable.
Accelerating the problem is a growing technology gap. Despite having 2.7 billion deskless workers worldwide, representing 80 per cent of the global workforce, only one per cent of software and technology investments has been allocated to this segment. This means there is a huge disconnect between frontline workers and their headquarters, leading to lack of sufficient training, communication challenges and low employee retention.
For this webinar, FMJ has teamed up with frontline training platform Lingio to bring together a panel of experts, to discuss how easy-to-use and efficient AI tools can help create engaging and gamified learning experiences that fit the needs of underserved deskless workers. The result? Better software and learning experiences lead to improved staff engagement and reduced staff turnover by up to 95 per cent, according to McKinsey.
To register for the webinar taking place on 11 September at 11:00 am click here.
