Employment in UK

Health service
Education
Computing and IT
Consulting
Construction industry
Aircraft engineers
Clinical psychologists

EMPLOYMENT CHANCES IN THE UK
Thousands of job vacancies are going unfilled in the UK, which has led the government to consider a new wave of immigration. But where are Britain's skills shortages?
 
The government has floated the idea of relaxing Britain's immigration rules in response to a growing skills shortage.

Home Office minister Barbara Roche says Britain is facing a demographic time-bomb because of its ageing population. By 2050, a quarter of its citizens are expected to be over 65 years old.

This could be disastrous for the economy, which is already suffering from labor shortages in a number of industries.

Although the Department for Employment cannot put a figure on how many job vacancies are unfilled because of skills deficiencies, a recent survey found one in four employers had difficulty finding staff.

New research by the CBI found firms in the business and professional sectors, such as accounting, computer services, market research and legal services, were suffering from skills shortages.

A third of white collar employers questioned in the CBI's quarterly survey of service industries, said labour shortages were likely to hinder investment plans. But which industries are being hit hardest?



Health service
Since 1997, the number of nurses on the national register has declined by more than 14,000. A July report by the Kings Fund healthcare charity said there were currently a record 17,000 vacancies unfilled.
Earlier this month, the NHS said it was to draft in 50 nurses from China because of a staffing shortage. Last week, the government announced a wider plan to recruit doctors from Europe, Australia and North America.


Education
In January, the Department for Education said there were 2,660 vacancies in the education field, although independent reports suggest the number is far higher.

There is an increasing emphasis on using supply teachers. Research by the BBC earlier this month found that 29% of the 8,600 teachers currently employed by supply agencies are foreign nationals.


Computing and IT
Such is the pace of the communications revolution, by 2003, an estimated 80,000 vacancies could be left unfilled because of skills shortages, according to a recent report commissioned by Andersen
Consulting.

Among the most sought-after workers are those with internet skills, such as software engineers for Java and Java Script, DHTML and Visual Basic.

The shortage is already so acute that some employers, such as Ridgeway, a multimedia company based in Reading, Berkshire, have offered £1,000 to any member of the public who can suggest a suitable employee.


Construction industry
The housing boom and Lottery-funded millennium projects have boosted the value of work by the UK construction industry by an average of 1.75% a year since 1996.

Research by merchant bank Robert Fleming says that forecast is set to double. But Graham Watts, chief executive of the Construction Industry Council, says there will not be enough building service engineers, civil engineers and construction managers.


Aircraft engineers
The booming air transport sector is suffering from a dearth of licensed engineers according to the Royal Aeronautical Society. The society last year reported that growth in the airline industry will likely be "severely limited" by the lack of qualified workers.


Clinical psychologists
Every month, about 250 vacancies for clinical psychologists are advertised, says Adrian Skinner, director of clinical psychology at Harrogate NHS Trust.

"The figure is high considering there are only 3,500 working in the profession, and the majority of health trusts will have a chronic problem in filling vacancies," he says.

Heath trusts have taken the interim measure of recruiting from abroad, but a 50% increase in post-graduate training course places is likely to ease the squeeze.