More than half (52pc) of US employers are experiencing difficulty filling crucial positions in their organisations, up from 14pc in 2010 and higher than the global average of 33pc, ManpowerGroup’s annual Talent Shortage Survey suggests.
According to the more than 1,300 US employers surveyed, the jobs that are most difficult to fill include skilled trades, sales representatives and engineers, all of which have appeared on the US list many times before.
The most common reasons employers give for this trend include candidates looking for more pay than is offered, lack of technical skills and lack of experience.
“The fact that companies cite a lack of skills or experience as a reason for talent shortages should be a wake-up call for employers, academia, government and individuals,” said Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup president of the Americas.
“It is imperative that these stakeholders work together to address the supply-and-demand imbalance in the labour market in a systematic, agile and sustainable way. There may also be an increasing imbalance between employers’ willingness to pay higher salaries in what is still a soft general labour market compared to the salary expectations of prospective employees, especially those with skills that are in high demand.”
