Are you missing out on hidden talent?

Last week the Office for National Statistics announced that unemployment in the UK was 3.6%, the lowest since 1974.  It feels strange that it is not that long ago that employers were concerned that people, particularly in the hospitality and entertainment sector, would be laid off permanently, never to return to the workplace.

Along with Germany (2.9%) and Poland (2.3%), the UK currently has one of Europe’s lowest unemployment rates.  By contrast some of our European neighbours like France (7.4%), Italy (8.1%) and Spain (14.4%) have much higher unemployment across their countries. [1]   It is also worth considering youth employment, those between 16 and 25 years old.  Now, the UK stands at 10.4% while the highest across Europe were recorded in Greece (31.64%), Spain (29.4%) and Italy (25.3%). [2]

In the UK the CIPD found in its recent “resourcing and talent planning survey” only 24% of employers have recruited a more diverse workforce compared with previous years.   This implies that employers are not thinking more widely about new sources of workers and, while the reduction in unemployment is good news, it means that employers need to think seriously about how to dig into untapped pools of workers who have struggled to enter or progress in the workplace.

In addition, we are now faced with a new dilemma in the UK – how do we access the people who are ready to get back into the workforce but may have been overlooked?   Think ex-offenders, retired returners, refugees or those with Asperger’s syndrome to name a few examples?  There are a number of organisations who are supporting people with transferrable or trainable skills into or back into the workplace.  There are some excellent organisations helping to do just that such as Bounce Back, Women in Prison, and the National Autistic Society.

If your organisation is struggling to recruit to please contact Hafton for a free consultation about how your business or charity might benefit from looking at new sources of talent at info@haftonconsultancy.com  giving your name, business and contact number.

[1] Source:  Statista website – June 2022

[2] Source:  Statista website – January 2022