Attracting the right staff is now harder because of a declining recruitment market, a new report claims.
The report by AXA insurance company found that 40 per cent of small businesses were struggling to attract the right calibre of employees because of this shrinking market.
Businesses that took part in the survey mainly blamed falling standards of education and growing salary expectations.
“The report identifies a disconnection in the recruitment area,” said Mike O’Brien, head of SME business at AXA. “Employers say that education standards are down while employees are demanding more money, but with an ageing population making younger recruits increasingly hard to find, employees, irrespective of calibre, are able to drive the market.”
Firms were also worried about the impact of the inability to employ the right people on the growth of their company, with firms of 50 – 250 employees more concerned (38 per cent) than those with under 50 (26 per cent).
However, job markets differ by region; businesses in Scotland and Northern Ireland find it the hardest nationally to recruit the right calibre of people (52 per cent compared to 34 per cent in the South East).
Other findings of the report included nearly half of all small businesses citing investment in training as critical for success, over a third believing that right premises in the right location is a key factor, and two thirds stating that it is essential to make the right investment decisions in IT in order to fuel future growth.
