This fall in the number of skilled engineers has been due to fewer graduates moving into the industry and tight immigration rules making it hard for business to employ skilled overseas labour. Sir James Dyson recently lamented onerous immigration rules being to blame for discouraging foreign engineering talent to either move to or to stay in the UK following university and even stated that British firms may be forced to move to locations where “engineers are made welcome”.

The UK as a whole

Overall, the UK is currently 268,000 employees short of the number required across key sectors to satisfy the long term demand of the country.

Despite strong recent employment growth figures, the current workforce needs to be 29,352,000 strong – 0.9% higher than the number of people currently employed in UK – for the country to be on track to achieve the necessary workforce size by 2050.

Previous research from Randstad showed that with the UK population forecast to be 74.5m in 2050 , the number of people employed across the country will need to be 34,772,000 in order to support demand . To reach this level of employment, the number of people in work in the UK would need to grow by 146,502 per year on average from its pre financial crisis level of 28,619,000 in 2008.

Fulfilment key for staff retention and attraction

The industries that are ahead of schedule in terms of workforce size are also the industries with above average levels of professional fulfilment among employees.

The workforces of the construction sector and IT workforce are some of the most fulfilled in the UK. Two thirds of construction workers (66%) say they are fulfilled at work, while 73% of IT professionals say the same.

Owen Goodhead, said: “If a workforce feels professionally fulfilled then retention rates are more likely to be higher. Similarly, industries with high levels of professional fulfilment will be more attractive to those yet to choose a career path. If the construction and engineering sector is to not only continue growth but also attract skilled workers to return to the UK over the coming decades then maximising professional fulfilment will be as important a ensuring a good migration balance.”

Notes

2050 population projection of 74.5m from Eurostat (a 21% rise compared to 61.3m in 2008)
Based on the construction workforce making up 2.21% of the overall workforce (proportion of workforce in 2008)
http://www.citb.co.uk/research/construction-skills-network/uk/
http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/457705/Sir-James-Dyson-warns-David-Cameron-Immigration-rules-are-killing-engineering-in-Britain
ONS – Number employed in the UK aged 16-64 = 29,084,000
2050 population projection of 74.5m from Eurostat (a 21% rise compared to 61.3m in 2008)
This is based on a 21% rise in the number of those employed in 2008 (28.6m)

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