Companies’ recruitment needs
The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise’s survey is based on answers to questions about recruitment needs from almost 4,000 companies.
The majority of the companies surveyed in all industries have the same need for recruitment now as they did six months ago. In the hospitality industry, on the other hand, 55 percent of the companies surveyed answer that they have a greater need for recruitment now than six months ago.
41 percent of companies experience that it has become more difficult to find staff with the right skills in the last six months. The hospitality industry and the transport industry stand out with 72 and 51 per cent, respectively, stating that it has become more difficult.
Almost every third company states that they have been forced to cancel or reduce operations due to a lack of skills or staff. The situation is worst in the hospitality industry (43 percent) and the construction industry (42 percent).
Source: Confederation of Swedish Enterprise
Already earlier this year, seven out of ten companies for the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise stated that they had difficulty finding the right skills at the right time. Now a new study shows that the problem remains and that in some places it has gotten worse.
– It actually affects companies regardless of industry, but some sectors see an extra large challenge right now, says Mia Bernhardsen, head of skills supply at the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise.
Still shortage of chefs
55 percent of the companies in the hospitality industry have a greater need for recruitment now than six months ago. Something that can to some extent be explained by the need for staff during the summer season.
The most difficult to find are trained chefs and hotel and kitchen staff.
– The people we meet now when we have a holiday simply, says Bernhardsen.
The need for recruitment has also increased in the transport and industrial sectors. The transport sector has undergone extensive technical development and a transition to more sustainable transport. The effect of this will be that staff with new skills are needed.
Consequence problems
The shortage in the transport sector can also create problems in several other areas, says Bernhardsen.
– If transport and logistics do not work in the transport sector, it will also affect other sectors. Goods on the shelves or deliveries to both industry and trade.
Almost every third company in the survey states that they have been forced to refuse assignments, that there has been no planned expansion or that they have had to reduce production due to staff shortages.
And there is a wide range of professions that are currently difficult to recruit. Examples of these are maintenance technicians, electricians, bakers, veterinarians, truck drivers and vehicle technicians, she says.
– This is the big obstacle to growth right now and we see that the situation is serious.
Practical training
In general, there is a great demand for practical vocational skills and there is an increased interest in these educations, which is needed, among other things, to overcome the lack of skills, says Bernhardsen.
– We would like to see more people choose practical vocational training, the traditional vocational training that exists, they are in many cases a door opener to the labor market.
The proportion who study vocational programs today is 30 percent. In the future, 40 percent of a cohort would need to graduate from a vocational program, according to the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise.