Training for vital skills

Abstract

There have been determined efforts in the last 20 years or so to strengthen and adapt the national training system so as to enable Government, industry and the education service to work together to train a sufficient number of skilled workers to meet industry's vital needs. But for all the progress that has been made, shortages of skilled people, particularly in times of economic expansion, remain a problem. The development of the Government's industrial strategy will create manpower demands which will make it all the more necessary to avoid such shortages in future. Just as there is no precise way of forecasting the skills the country will need in the years ahead, there is no certain way of providing them. The Government and Manpower Services Commission have been considering together whether a new initiative should be taken. This paper outlines as a basis for public discussion one way of easing shortages through a new scheme of collective funding for selected occupations. The scheme would not only increase the volume of training for skills but would provide greater opportunities to individual workers to develop their potential. Publication of the proposals represents the first joint initiative that the Government and the Manpower Services Commission have taken. That is a measure of the importance that we attach to the problem of overcoming skill shortages. The proposals are published without commitment to their implementation because we believe it essential that all those concerned should be able to examine them in the light of the needs of their own industries before any decisions are taken. The way ahead will be decided in the light of views expressed on this document and judgements about the best use of resources.

Citation

(1976), "Training for vital skills", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 8 No. 8, pp. 313-316. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb003559