Launch of our 2021 skills and demand in industry survey
Published: Thu 16 Dec 2021
The fieldwork was conducted online with 1039 engineering and technology employers across the UK between the 6 August and 2 September 2021 by market research agency YouGov.
Our report breaks down the results of our survey into five categories, exploring the impacts of Covid-19 and Brexit, skills shortages, recruitment difficulties, sustainability strategies and new entrants to the workforce.
Below are some of the key findings from our survey.
The impacts of Covid-19 and Brexit
- More than half of engineering employers say they have had to deal with staff ill/self-isolating as a result of Covid-19 (55%), with slightly fewer saying they have had to cope with staff being furloughed or made redundant (51%) or had to shift to remote working (50%).
- 45% of engineering employers have experienced difficulty importing/exporting to and from other countries.
Current workforce needs
- Over a quarter (27%) say the greatest skills gaps in their organisation are in high skilled roles (university level or higher) with more (31%) finding them in intermediate roles (A-Level, NVQ 3 Level, apprenticeships).
- Around half (51%) think that the Government should be providing more support to train or reskill in priority areas nationally with slightly less thinking the same about their local area (45%).
Gaining skills
- Applicants lacking technical skills remain the main difficulty seen by engineering employers (42%).
- Most engineering employers who think applicants are lacking in technical skills say that it is specialist skills/knowledge needed for the role that is likely to be lacking (63%).
Diversity
- Around a third of engineering, employers have taken some action to increase the diversity of their engineering, IT, and technical workforce in terms of gender (33%) or ethnicity (30%).
- The most common forms of activity cited by engineering employers who are working to increase the diversity of their technical staff are flexible/part-time working (40%), offering equal pay/transparency of policies (38%), and staff training/diversity ambassadors (35%).
Skills for sustainability
- When it comes to their own organisations, half of respondents consider it achievable (50%) to reach net zero by 2050, compared with 38% who think it is not achievable.
- Skills are a factor in lowering environmental impact; 20% are upskilling their current workforce to improve their sustainability and 12% are recruiting new employees with the relevant skills to do so.
Looking to the future
- When engineering employers are asked what skills they anticipate being important areas for growth in their sector over the next five years, over a third say design and manufacturing skills (36%). This is closely followed by energy and environmental sustainability skills (35%).
Read our full survey for more findings, conclusions, and recommendations to ensure that current and future workforce needs are met.
