One in three firms willing to provide primary skills to workers
Published: 18 September 2012
In Germany around 7.3 million people currently in paid employment have no vocational qualifications and are considered unskilled or low-skilled. Due to their lack of qualifications, these workers are at greater risk of becoming unemployed. At the same time, German companies are looking for qualified labour and are experiencing difficulties in filling vacancies in certain sectors. There is a significant demand for doctors and experts in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (DE1107029I [1], DE1009019I [2], DE0707039I [3]).[1] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/industrial-relations/joint-strategy-to-resolve-shortage-of-skilled-labour[2] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/undefined/debate-on-the-future-of-skilled-labour[3] www.eurofound.europa.eu/ef/observatories/eurwork/articles/shortage-of-skilled-labour-in-industrial-sectors
A study by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research indicates that over a third of companies in Germany are willing to train workers in primary skills such as literacy and numeracy. The background to the study is an on-going debate on how to meet the demand for skilled labour and release unexploited potential in the German labour market. A lack of a basic education affects the employability of low-skilled workers and is accompanied by a higher risk of becoming unemployed.
Background
In Germany around 7.3 million people currently in paid employment have no vocational qualifications and are considered unskilled or low-skilled. Due to their lack of qualifications, these workers are at greater risk of becoming unemployed. At the same time, German companies are looking for qualified labour and are experiencing difficulties in filling vacancies in certain sectors. There is a significant demand for doctors and experts in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (DE1107029I, DE1009019I, DE0707039I).
Training low-skilled workers is one of the options currently under discussion for dealing with the shortage of skilled labour, and the Federal Employment Agency (BA) has stressed in a report (in German, 4.18Mb PDF) the need to foster the employability of low-skilled workers. A study, The basic education and employability of the low-skilled: operational requirements and labour market conditions, recently released by the Cologne Institute for Economic Research (IW) looks into the structure of unskilled labour in Germany and companies’ efforts to train low-skilled workers.
Study results
Using the data from a microcensus, the IW study shows that in 2009, 18% of all people employed in private industry and the public sector held no vocational training or similar certificate. In numbers of workers, the sectors of manufacturing (1.4 million) and retail (nearly 1.1 million) had the most low-skilled workers in that year. However, at 18.1% in both sectors, this represented a lower proportion of low-skilled workers than other industries.
The proportion is higher in sectors such as the transportation and storage sector (41.9%), the hotels and restaurants industry (40.3%), private households employing staff (37%) and other business-related services (28.5%). Unskilled workers are mostly employed as simple labourers, for instance in the construction industry, or as painters or cleaning staff.
Given companies’ growing demand for better skilled labour and the types of positions currently unfilled, the study assumes that the number of jobs for low-skilled workers will decrease in the future, hampering the participation of this section of the workforce in the labour market.
Against this backdrop, in 2010 experts from IW Consult, a subsidiary of the IW, conducted a national online survey of 1,100 companies. The firms approached were asked to describe their expectations when employing low or semi-skilled workers and to identify their minimum skill requirements.
As shown in the table below, verbal skills and arithmetic were regarded as either ‘indispensable’ or ‘important’ at the workplace by over or nearly 90% of companies.
| Skills | Indispensable (%) | Important (%) | Total (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Honesty | 88.7 | 8.7 | 97.5 |
| Reliability | 88.5 | 8.8 | 97.3 |
| Punctuality | 83.9 | 13.2 | 97.1 |
| Commitment and enthusiasm | 85.8 | 10.6 | 96.5 |
| German language skills suitable for the workplace | 77.1 | 19.2 | 96.3 |
| Manners | 66.7 | 29.6 | 96.3 |
| Willingness to learn | 74.7 | 20.2 | 94.9 |
| Verbal skills (i.e. ability to communicate facts in a comprehensible manner) | 65.5 | 28.5 | 94.0 |
| Ability to work in a team | 71.4 | 22.4 | 93.8 |
| Ability to comprehend work-related texts | 55.6 | 34.1 | 89.7 |
| Basic arithmetic | 59.2 | 30.2 | 89.4 |
Note: Table includes rounding differences.
Source: Klein, Helmut E. / Schöpper-Grabe, Sigrid (2012), Grundbildung und Beschäftigungsfähigkeit von Geringqualifizierten (The basic education and employability of the low-skilled).
Primary skills such as literacy are deemed highly important requirements for holding down a job, and affect the employability of workers. However, not all low-skilled workers are adequately equipped. In 2011, around 7.5 million people of working age in Germany were estimated to be functionally illiterate.
The survey also asked about companies’ willingness to offer training courses specifically aimed at improving workers’ primary skills. Nearly 31% stated that they were prepared to offer such measures if necessary, while nearly 36% said they would do so if public financial support was available.
Commentary
While the latest results indicate that one third of companies have already grasped the importance of a basic education for their low-skilled workers, there is still room for improvement and more measures could be offered where needed. However, the researchers suggest that firms cannot be expected to compensate for what appear to be greater societal issues, such as a lack in proper schooling and education. Public support measures are therefore needed to bolster companies’ efforts.
As the analysis highlights, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has initiated a research and development project to reduce illiteracy among adults, while also emphasising the need for basic education in the workplace.
Reference
Klein, Helmut E., Schöpper-Grabe, Sigrid (2012), Grundbildung und Beschäftigungsfähigkeit von Geringqualifizierten [The basic education and employability of the low-skilled: Corporate requirements and labour market conditions], IW-Trends, No. 2/2012, IW Köln, Cologne, available online at http://www.iwkoeln.de/de/studien/iw-trends/beitrag/87321
Sandra Vogel, Cologne Institute for Economic Research (IW Köln)
Eurofound recommends citing this publication in the following way.
Eurofound (2012), One in three firms willing to provide primary skills to workers, article.
