The Skills Shortage Will Still Be Here Into 2021

Whilst there is an abundance of talent available for businesses as we enter autumn, the jobs that were hard to fill at the start of 2020, are still going to be there towards the end of the year.

A hard to fill role can be defined as one that requires specific skills, experience, or qualifications among applicants.

According to the BBC, there has been a shift in industries seeing a huge demand in 2020 such as IT and digital technology, warehouse based roles, supermarkets, lorry drivers and cleaners.

Hannah Sills, Head of Permanent Recruitment says, “One thing we can’t forget is that a skills shortage is very much with us in the UK. Just because there is currently higher unemployment, doesn’t mean there are more candidates for every role.”

“There is a huge amount of talented candidates who are ready to work, particularly within industries with a lower barrier to entry, but there are still challenges for specific sectors.”

According to job site Indeed, finding suitable staff is challenging for industries such as solicitors, software engineers and developers. Hannah recognises the skill shortage that is very much here, “Employers need to be aware of the types of roles they are looking to advertise. Will they have an abundance of skilled candidates that match what they are looking for or a minimal return of candidates?”

Prior to the pandemic, a report from Luminate, recognised that a third of UK vacancies were considered hard to fill. Hannah adds, “This is where the opportunity sits. Training for a specialist job, or recognising the skills and roles that are in demand, can put someone in high demand. People are considering industry sidesteps, even a recent survey from Totaljobs, noted 70% of workers are now more likely to consider a side step into a new industry.”

Sourcing the best candidates for difficult roles requires additional efforts and a fresh, revised approach and with an efficient recruitment strategy.