Employers need resources to meet London's workforce requirements

By Deb Nalywaiko The Business Executive LONDON -- London is facing the problem of a skilled labour shortage head on. The unemployment rate in London dropped to 4.7 percent in July, indicating the city is dangerously close to a shortage of capable workers. Accordingly, there is a pressing need to find, train and retain skilled workers i n the city. A Workforce Development Strategy was recently released by the London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC), an organization responsible for attracting new business investments, and for maintaining the growth and retention of existing businesses. "The LEDC has been very successful in getting businesses to the city, and this could be jeopardized if the workforce cannot support the business needs," says Jeny Wallace, Director of Workforce Development at the LEDC. The strategy outlines three key areas to counter the problem: increasing the skills of existing workers; increasing immigration to London; and developing programs to retain older, more experienced workers in the workforce. The problem, coined a 'demographic time bomb,' is described by Wallace as "an aging workforce combined with declining birthrates." She notes some of the areas where shortages of trained labour will be keenly felt include the skilled trades such as plumbers and electricians, as well as bookkeepers, lawyers and t eachers. Although this problem is common to Western cities as a whole, Wallace says London faces a greater challenge because of its low unemployment rate and low population growth. Wallace notes one of the first steps is communication of the problem. "Raising awareness of the issues, getting people to pay attention to the issues, and talking to businesses is very important," she says. It has been identified that employers need improved resources in order to meet London's future workforce requirements. Small to medium-sized enterprises generally lack the ability to provide full human resource support for their staff, both for recruiting new and retaining existing workers. As a result, this group faces the greatest challenge in maintaining the workforce required for a viable business. "There is a need to improve the practices of those organizations that don't have their own human resources personnel, and are typically very focused on getting on with business," says Wallace. "They need easily accessible an d easy to use information." She says a kit is being designed to help businesses with their work planning, which in turn, will fundamentally help their work practices. The LEDC is also looking at attracting workers from other communities. "We are looking at creating relationships in offshore locations, in communities where we know there are appropriate skills developments, language skills, and how we might be able to draw from those communities," says Wallace. To further improve communication, a better link between educational training facilities and employers is a priority, allowing the institutions to fully understand the requirements of businesses. "We are looking at enhancing the linkages between learning and working," says Wallace, allowing the employers to articulate their needs better to the learning facilities to better ensure proper training. "The workforce of the future is going to be predominantly a skilled workforce."