Australian companies will continue to suffer at the hands of the skill shortage crisis in 2023, with 70% of employers stating the lack of talent will cost them.
According to research conducted by specialised recruiter Robert Half, the recent 3.5% unemployment rate that circles dangerously close to a 50-year low has led 44% of employers to believe the skill shortage will be the biggest hurdle to overcome this year.
The research found chief investment officers and chief financial officers in particular feel the pinch with over 80% stating that the competition for specialised talent has increased compared to 2022.
It further stated, more than half of chief investment officers (52%) identified the talent shortage as their primary staffing challenge for the next 12 months.
Coming into the new year, we are still seeing historically low unemployment and high job vacancy rates, explained Robert Half director Nicole Gorton.
With business confidence soaring despite whispers of a potential recession in Australia, the skills shortage for finance, technology and business support talent continues to plague the labour market, causing financial impacts on businesses at a time where the focus on cost management has heightened.
Gorton added the end of the pandemic has not caused the skills shortage to ease as once believed.
Or at least not yet, she said.
Though some companies are reverting to hiring freezes or reducing their headcount, finding the right skilled talent remains essential at a time when companies are actioning their growth initiatives for the new year.
Employers report that not having the required qualified staff in-house will have financial impacts for their businesses, with 70% of business leaders believing these financial costs will only increase in 2023.
A third of general hiring managers (33%) expect the financial impact to increase significantly, compared to 17% of chief financial officers and 14% of chief investment officers.
Overall, 13% of business leaders believe the financial impacts will remain the same and 3% state it will decrease.
Of those surveyed 26% believe it will take collaboration between the government, education providers and employer groups to solve the issue.
We know there is no single silver bullet to fixing the skills shortage in Australia but strategies like the government, employers, and education providers working on joint initiatives plus a focus on upskilling and reskilling professionals could allow more effective usage of the talent we have in our nation, said Gorton.
Sector-wide investment in training and upskilling or reskilling of workers is the key answer for 23% of leaders, while increasing the availability of skills through international migration, including retaining more overseas students, was identified as the main solution for 20% of respondents.
Only 4% of leaders point to hiring remote talent, only 5% prefer initiatives to entice retirees back into the workforce while only 3% of employers identify encouraging Indigenous people, people with disabilities and those with poor English skills back into employment.
Companies must hire candidates based on their potential to grow into a role and invest in internal training, professional development, and succession planning to find and retain the skills their business requires, concluded Gorton.
https://www.financialstandard.com.au/news/skill-shortage-to-continue-to-cost-aussie-companies-179798241
