Is there in your country a shortage of skillful workers?

13 comments

1. If you ask our news cycle yes. But they wont raise wages here much anyways (lets just pay the media extra to advertise that we lack workers). But anecdotally I’ve seen a shortage of workers in consulting firms (and elsewhere), yet wages are almost always put or rising slowly (the tabulated values if you threaten to leave they pay you more).

   Additionally, we are signing agreements with african countries/ Nepal/ India/ etc to get more workers in the country.

2. There is a huge shortage of skillful workers combined with no intention from companies to pay them more than like 500 EUR.

3. Yes, pretty much. In the Netherlands there’s a high demand for people who work with their hands, especially in construction

4. [removed]

5. Short answer: yes

   Longer answer: certain industries are worse off than others.

   The one I know of best, professional services/accounting has had a higher than usual rate of turnover. Normally, there is an expected amount at the senior/professionally qualified level, but seems like people are quitting earlier too. Whether that’s to go into “industry” (in house) or to just leave the industry altogether is up to them.

   Now for those occupations with decent salary, the issue seems to stem from the working conditions. Working during the pandemic blurred the line so hard between work/life balance that it is easy for this to simply become worklife.

   Moreover, WFH has proven to be popular for some workers, so employers that dictate and demand full office presence, for no extra benefit are leaving themselves open to resignations and poaching.

6. The government keeps a list of so called “bottleneck profession”: professions for which too few workers are available. This can be because of a quantitative shortage, a qualitative shortage, the specific working environment, or a combination of all three. This [list](https://www.vdab.be/sites/default/files/media/files/Knelpuntberoepen%202021.pdf) is really quite extensive (even if you don’t speak Dutch you can still judge by the sheer number of listed professions).

   The top 10:

   * Nurse
   * Industrial systems technician
   * Construction supervisor / Site manager
   * Cleaner at home
   * Maintenance mechanic
   * Calculator for construction
   * Technician construction office
   * Driver tractor-trailer
   * Analyst developer ICT
   * Bookkeeper-Accountant

7. We are lacking all workers. Not accepting somebody because he’s not skilled is a luxury most companies cannot afford.

   It took us 2 years to find a car technician, and the only requirement was “know something about cars and be willing to learn”. Eventhough we offered above average salary and there’s a school for car techs in the neighboring town.

8. Oh yes, certainly! It’s basically the outcome of our stupid decisions and is now coming to bite us in the ass. Since we don’t have many skilled workers, because most of them move to other European countries for work, we are left with cheap, but bad options for anything we need. There is also a shortage of teachers in many areas in Greece, and students may not even get to do a certain subject for over a year.

9. The States has a shortage of 100k+ per industry jobs in many fields that require some months of schooling and training and then journeymen work. After some yrs experience specially with union work $100k+ is likely. These fields are electricians, HVAC, plumbing, CDL drivers, Cnc machinist, pipefitters, welders. Also 500k or more cyber security jobs available now starting around 80k or more.

10. I heard that France lack of skilled workers in some area, resulting in a loss of skills in some industry.

    The example generally given (I don’t know if it’s accurate) is nuclear. As last mass construction of the french nuclear plants was decades ago. Since then, industry and university mostly trained people to maintain nuclear plant and design new reactors.

    So when industry was called to build new reactors, EPR Flamanville for example, succession of errors were made. In comparison, china has already launched its own EPR designed in cooperation with the french industry, as china is in a phase of massive construction, and has an industry trained in that area.

    I heard also that, despite France forming real good engineers with engineering school and also at university, those engineers massively go work abroad, where jobs offers are more interesting.

    At the end (this is my personal opinion, based on my personal experience), France is a victim of its pride. When you are 18 in France you get to choose two ways for universitary studies, one is the international standard at University License, Master, PhD… The other is the more traditional way 2 years in a preparation class, then three years in a “school” some of those school are really famous here and this is quite prestigious to go there.

    The problem is that some of those schools seems to really fall the cliff, and classes more and more mediocre. I don’t know why, but I think it’s linked to the very high opinion people have of them, so they don’t have to prove their values. As a result, some good university became the best place to make real science in France

11. There is a shortage in big cities and in industrialized regions(like Upper/Lower Silesia, Greater Poland). For example I cannot find anyone to make insulation of my old house, all guys are working on new constructions where job is much easier, and where they are doing everything – not only insulation. Factories and storages are hiring everyone – even guys from so-called ‘pathology’ have jobs and companies unfortunately are closing eyes when someone will come drunk. There are estimates that over 1.5 mln foreigners(mainly Ukrainians) is working in PL now, and government is looking to encourage people from more distant countries(i`ve heard of agencies that transfer Filipinos from Dubai to PL) to come to Poland. The problem is with wages – in many professions wages are still low, especially restaurant owners are known to pay really low, some economists are saying ironically that polish restaurant owners have 3 problems: regulations, employees and clients.

12. Good technicians are a pain in the ass to find here in Belgium.

    At the end of the day it’s rough work for intelligent people so I get it, would never become one myself, but that doesn’t make it fun looking for those we need.

13. Took my car to a mechanic. His place was swarming with other cars. He told me it will take 3 weeks for him to inspect and solve the malfunction.

    Took my shoes to a shoemaker in late September. His shop was full of various shoes and sneakers. He told me to come after 1st November to pick up the shoes.

    Took my travel bag to a tailor to see if she can fix the linen part that got ripped off. She has shown me full place of various jeans, dresses and all other sorts of clothes and told me that she would be able to do it after the NY.

    So I guess this country is struggling with skilled workers and craftsmen.