Our labour market has been squeezed for the right skills and jobs for young people
Right now, one of the most pressing concerns for City businesses is a shortage of workers with the right skills. According to research by London Councils, almost a quarter of all vacancies in the capital are due to a lack of applicants with the necessary talents. Meanwhile, the number of cases where employers have been unable to fill a vacancy due to skills shortages across London has more than doubled since 2011.
So how do we start to find a solution to a challenging labour market and ensure our skills base keeps pace with what is needed by employers?
By working closely with the education sector, firms of all sizes can play their part in developing a pipeline of talent and in turn helping them compete globally. Young people have been dealt a particularly bad hand by the pandemic, which has been hugely disruptive to their education and career opportunities.
And we are still seeing that too many of those at the top are drawn from a narrow background, which is particularly acute in professional sectors such as finance, government and law.
There is hope on the horizon even in a time of economic uncertainty. Employers across a range of sectors are increasingly realising that diversity of thought is good for business – and greater diversity in the workforce can bring benefits to the bottom line.
As London recovers from the virus, we must redouble our investment in the capital’s young people.
Today is the first day of the London Careers Festival, a two-week hybrid event hosted at Guildhall, where 20,000 young people from across London are connected to the world of work. It brings together students from the capital’s primary and secondary schools, with major firms including the BBC, The Guardian Foundation, Royal Geographical Society, and Sir Robert McAlpine.
These businesses will offer employment advice, apprenticeships opportunities, and work experience, to kickstart young careers after the struggles of the past two-and-a-half years.
It is not only the young people who benefit. Businesses who work with the young and diverse future workforce keep themselves competitive, staying one step ahead of rivals.
Firms like these become more attractive to young talent from all backgrounds, with better community engagement and high staff morale.
In her inaugural speech as Chair of the Social Mobility Commission, Katharine Birbalsingh raised some important questions about what we can do for those young people who have not gone to university, but still need a route to high skills and good careers.
She asked how as a society – and an economy – we can help young people at the very bottom of the jobs market – particularly those with low levels of basic literacy and numeracy – who are unable to access higher paid work.
The answer, for us, is clear. Trailblazing employers are changing what defines talent and adjusting their recruitment and progression procedures to secure a more dynamic workforce. According to the Department for Education’s Careers Strategy, young people who have four or more encounters with an employer during their education are not only much less likely to be unemployed – but also likely to be better paid. This enables a stronger economy. Our action to solve the current challenges in the labour market need to be practical, to ensure young people are equipped to play a leading role in our businesses.