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SMEs 'should take more responsibility for staff skills'

Published On 10 April 2007 at 09:13:31

The UK's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) should take more responsibility for the training of their staff, a new report argues.

According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), British businesses need to act to address the 'skills shortage' that the UK is currently facing.

To achieve this aim of improving the nation's skill level, CIPD says that line managers must play a more active role in developing staff ability.

Figures show that 90 per cent of businesses believe that line managers should take the responsibility for improving workforce skill, but only 12 per cent think their own line managers take this responsibility seriously.

"As the UK's economy becomes increasingly service-led organisations cannot afford to be complacent about addressing their employees' learning and development needs," said Victoria Winkler, the CIPD's learning and development adviser.

"Learning and development activities are vital to ensure that the workforce is kept up to date with fast changing skills demands.

"Line managers are key to delivering this and thus need to be supported in meeting their employees' needs."

A recent report from Manpower found that 38 per cent of UK businesses, including SMEs, said that they struggled to find the right staff.

 

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