Skill shortage hits search forright people

By Alyson Fixter

More than half of Britain’s publishers are having problems finding
the right people to fill their jobs and one-third are having problems
retaining staff.

That’s the conclusion of a survey of a cross-section of the
country’s leading publishers, of whom a massive 95 per cent are
currently recruiting. Those interviewed said that low salaries, a
shortage of skills and poaching by competitors were all contributing to
the problem.

The survey, carried out for the Periodical
Publishers’ Association (PPA) by Celre, involved 6,079 people from 20
companies, including the BBC, RCN Publishing, Emap, IPC, RBI and Which?

Only
22 per cent of the companies surveyed offered a flexible benefits
system and very few offered flexible working hours, job sharing, home
working and childcare support, although on the positive side, all but
one operated pension schemes.

Loraine Davies, director of the
Periodicals Training Council, said: “This is an important benchmarking
survey for the industry, as it looks beyond the financial package that
employees receive to include broader motivators such as home working
and job sharing.

“It’s vital that organisations consider the
psychological contract – especially in a tightening labour market – and
although the survey shows that the industry has a way to go in some
areas, it confirms that it is concerned about employee satisfaction.”