News and features

Tue, 2 Jun 2009

Manufacturing organisation asks for training funding clarification

Manufacturing body the EEF has asked the government to provide greater clarity over training funding.

Manufacturing organisation EEF has urged the government to be more clear about the state of funding for staff training. It claimed there is a lack of coherent policy regarding staff training schemes over the coming year, reports the Engineer Online. The body said many companies might end up avoiding any commitment to skills programmes beyond this year. Should this happen, EEF said there could be a shortage of skills in the sector once there is an upturn in the country's economy. Lee Hopley, head of economic policy at the EEF, commented: "Manufacturers have been doing their best to hang on to skilled workers during this recession." She explained that the ability of firms to do this over the next half of the year during difficult economic conditions could be crucial to outcome of the potential skills shortage further down the line.

"What we're really looking for at the moment is some clarity to what is going to happen to funding beyond this year," Ms Hopley commented. The EEF representative said the longer there is uncertainty, the more difficult life will be for the manufacturing sector. A spokesperson for the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills said that in a recession, the "most important" thing to do would be to train people properly to ensure they and their employers have the necessary skills to help them survive the downturn.

This comes after the Manufacturing Institute said firms in the sector are taking a variety of steps to ensure they perform to a high level. A representative said that businesses had showed "impressive form" during tough economic times.

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