Home > News > April 2008 > 09 April 2008

Research looks at employability skills among young people

Employers are struggling to find young people with the right skills for work, suggests new research by the Learning and Skills Network (LSN).

According to the research, when recruiting a school or college leaver employers look for people who can read, write, do basic maths and show enthusiasm for work, above anything else. But, only 13% of employers who had tried to recruit a young person said that they have always been successful. Many who failed to recruit a school or college leaver indicated that it was because candidates lacked literacy or numeracy skills, or did not have the right attitude to work.

The survey of 1137 employers was carried out by YouGov on behalf of the Learning and Skills Network (LSN). The research report 'Employability Skills Explored' was launched by LSN at its Employability Skills evening reception on Wednesday 2nd April 2008.

The employers who took part in the survey were asked what skills they would expect a young person who has just left school, college or a training scheme to have in order to be employable. Eight out of ten employers said timekeeping skills, 79% said literacy skills and 77% numeracy skills. When asked to rank a list of 14 skills in order of importance, employers ranked communication skills one, literacy two and numeracy third.

Employers were also asked to identify 'deal breaker' skills, or the skills that if not present would prevent them from selecting a young candidate for a job. Fifty-five percent named literacy skills as a deal breaker and 51% said communication skills. Enthusiasm and commitment were the next most frequently named deal breaker skills, with 48% of employers indicating that this was the case. 47% of employers said that numeracy was a deal breaker.

Commenting on the research, John Stone, chief executive, Learning and Skills Network said: "Above all else, employers want young people who are looking for their first job to be literate, numerate and communicate well. Attitude is also important, employers want young job candidates to be good at timekeeping and show enthusiasm and commitment to work. This is a key issue that needs to be addressed if we are to equip young people with the skills they need for work and reduce levels of youth unemployment."

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