Good employee – employer relations has more far-reaching effects than we initially believed.
According to newly released research, business owners and entrepreneurs who do not train their staff can actually endanger the UK economy’s future.
The research was conducted by Skills for Business, a part of the Sector Skills Development Agency. The study showed that three out of five employers have admitted knowing that potential problems are going to be faced by the economy as the workforce ages. Yet this same number of respondents also said that they still do not give annual training to their staff.
Of the more than 13,000 business owners surveyed, two out of three have also revealed that they are now finding difficulty in hiring new employees who possess the skills that their companies need.
The most alarming finding of the research though, showed that 50 per cent of the business owners believed that the kind of skills businesses need today have virtually remained unchanged from the skills needed to run a business in the past – this despite the onset of many technological advances.
Skills for Business has already warned business owners not to be too complacent because this attitude can become a serious liability in terms of the UK economy’s future. They warn that a “skills time bomb” is ticking because the workforce’s age is rising and yet a lot of employers are still failing to train their staff.
Business solutions and company formation experts are urging business owners to heed the grim scenario being painted by the survey. They said that if this situation continues, there could be serious economic implications for the country.