Tag: Gender Pay Gap

How is and how can the gender pay gap be closed with news opinions and reviews on BusinessRiskTV.com

The gender pay gap is the difference between the average earnings of men and women. It is often expressed as a percentage of men’s earnings, so a gap of 20% means that women earn, on average, 80% of what men earn.

The gender pay gap is a complex issue with many contributing factors. Some of these factors include:

Occupational segregation: Women are more likely to be employed in lower-paying occupations than men.

Lack of women in leadership positions: Women are underrepresented in senior management positions, which typically pay more than lower-level positions.

Unconscious bias: Employers may make unconscious decisions that disadvantage women, such as giving them lower performance reviews or fewer opportunities for advancement.

Family responsibilities: Women are more likely to take on the primary responsibility for childcare and eldercare, which can limit their ability to work full-time or advance in their careers.
The gender pay gap has a number of negative consequences, including:

Women have less money to save for retirement.
Women are more likely to live in poverty.
Women have less power in the workplace.
Women are less likely to be represented in leadership positions.

There are a number of things that can be done to close the gender pay gap, including:

Encouraging women to pursue careers in higher-paying fields.
Promoting women into leadership positions.
Addressing unconscious bias in the workplace.
Providing affordable childcare and eldercare.
Closing the gender pay gap is essential for achieving gender equality. It will help women to achieve their full potential and contribute to the economy in a meaningful way.

Skills Scarcity: The Grip on Growth in 2024’s UK Business Landscape

Unpacking the UK’s talent crisis: How skills shortages threaten business growth in 2024.

Skills and labour shortages holding back your business growth or threatening your ability to maintain existing levels of business activity in 2024?

The year 2024 dawns with a familiar unease for many British businesses. Is the UK having a labour shortage? Not just having one, but grappling with a multifaceted talent crisis threatening to stifle growth and even imperil existing operations. While economic forecasts paint a cautiously optimistic picture, the ground beneath is riddled with the gaping fissures of skills and labour shortages. This article delves into the anatomy of this crisis, identifying the biggest skills gaps and their impact on various sectors, while offering actionable insights for businesses to navigate this treacherous terrain.

The Stark Reality: Numbers Don’t Lie

Yes, the UK is undeniably experiencing a severe labour shortage. As of November 2023, over 1.1 million job vacancies remained unfilled, a figure only slightly down from the record highs witnessed earlier in the year. This deficit stretches across industries, with sectors like hospitality and leisure (35.5%), construction (20.7%), and healthcare (19.5%) bearing the brunt. Even more disconcerting is the narrowing gap between vacancies and unemployment numbers, implying a mismatch between available personnel and required skillsets.

The Roots of the Crisis: A Multifaceted Maze

This predicament stems from a confluence of factors:

  • Demographic Shifts: An ageing population and declining birth rates create a shrinking pool of young talent entering the workforce.
  • Skill Gaps: Rapid technological advancements demand new skillsets, leaving traditional workforce demographics with inadequate adaptability. This is particularly evident in the need for digital skills, data analytics, and cyber security expertise.
  • Wage Stagnation: Wages failing to keep pace with inflation discourages potential entrants, particularly in low-wage sectors like hospitality and care.
  • Working Conditions: Concerns about job security, unsociable hours, and demanding workloads deter candidates from joining certain industries.

The Sectorial Pinch: Where Does it Hurt Most?

The ramifications of these factors play out differently across industries:

  • Hospitality and Leisure: This sector faces a double whammy – reduced EU migration and a reluctance among domestic workers to accept low-wage, often precarious jobs. The result is a persistent shortfall in chefs, waiters, and housekeeping staff, impacting tourism and the wider economy.
  • Construction and Manufacturing: Skill shortages in critical trades like carpentry, plumbing, and welding hamper project completion and infrastructure development. Additionally, a lack of digital skills impedes automation and productivity gains.
  • Tech and Innovation: The UK struggles to keep pace with the burgeoning demand for software developers, data scientists, and cyber security professionals. This talent deficit stifles innovation and threatens the UK’s potential as a tech hub.
  • Healthcare and Social Care: A critical shortfall in nurses, care workers, and mental health professionals puts immense pressure on an already overburdened system. This gap in care provision directly impacts patient well-being and the sustainability of the NHS.

Navigating the Maze: Strategies for Survival and Growth

The current landscape doesn’t spell doom and gloom. Businesses can adopt proactive strategies to overcome the talent crunch:

  • Invest in Upskilling and Reskilling: Train existing employees to acquire new skills relevant to future demands.
  • Rethink Recruitment Practices: Broaden your talent pool by considering candidates from diverse backgrounds and offering flexible work arrangements.
  • Focus on Employee Well-being: Competitive wages, strong employer branding, and a positive work environment can attract and retain top talent.
  • Embrace Automation: Invest in technologies that can augment existing workforce capabilities and bridge skill gaps.
  • Collaborate with Educational Institutions: Partner with universities and vocational schools to foster skilled talent pipelines.
  • Advocate for Policy Changes: Lobby the government for immigration reforms and investment in training programs to address critical skill shortages.

A Call to Action: Collective Responsibility, Collective Success

The UK’s skills and labour shortages require a multi-pronged approach. Businesses, educational institutions, and the government must collaborate to bridge the gap.

Bridging the Gap: A Collective Endeavour for UK Business Sustainability

While the challenges seem daunting, a collective spirit of innovation and adaptation can turn the tide. Embracing upskilling, rethinking recruitment, and advocating for policy changes are crucial steps for individual businesses. However, the onus doesn’t fall solely on their shoulders.

Education Systems Need Revamping: Curriculum needs to evolve to address industry demands, focusing on digital skills, adaptability, and lifelong learning. Universities and vocational schools should collaborate with businesses to create internship programmes and tailor courses to meet specific talent needs.

Government Intervention is Key: Policy reforms focusing on immigration, talent visas for critical sectors, and targeted investment in training programmes can significantly impact the talent landscape. Streamlining visa processes and attracting skilled professionals from abroad can provide immediate relief. Additionally, investing in vocational training facilities and apprenticeships can create pipelines for skilled workers in high-demand fields.

Collaboration is the Cornerstone: Building partnerships between businesses, educational institutions, and the government is vital. Forums for knowledge sharing, joint training initiatives, and industry-aligned curriculum development can create a synergistic ecosystem fostering future-proof talent.

Looking Beyond 2024: The skills and labour shortages are not merely a 2024 challenge; they represent a structural shift in the workforce landscape. Businesses must adopt a longer-term perspective, fostering a culture of lifelong learning and continuous skill development within their workforce. Embracing remote work and flexible work models can attract a wider talent pool and enhance employee retention.

In conclusion, the UK’s skills and labour crisis presents a formidable obstacle, but not an insurmountable one. By embracing innovation, rethinking recruitment, and fostering collaboration, businesses can not only navigate the current turbulence but also build resilience for the future. A collective effort from businesses, educational institutions, and the government, coupled with a forward-looking vision, can unlock the potential of a skilled and thriving workforce, propelling the UK towards a sustainable and prosperous future.

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Strategies for managing employee shortages

BusinessRiskTV Risk Jobs Search and Recruitment

How do you attract recruit and retain top talent?

What is it about your business culture or reputation that should attract more job applications? How do you engage with your employees and fulfil their career progression aspirations? How well do you communicate with your existing employees and with those whom you wish to attract to your business? What opportunities are there for your employees to learn and develop their skills whilst improving your business development?

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How are you handling your talent shortage?

Have you overlooked the potential of your existing employees to fill your own skills gaps? Could you adjust your job descriptions to attract people who have the potential to grow into roll you need to fill? What could your business do in the short-term to manage what may be a short-term problem?

If you are not filling up your boat fast enough, what are you doing stop it leaking!

Many businesses under value the talent they have in their business already. The cost of replacing existing talent can include a higher salary to attract staff who leave, lost business waiting to fill job vacancies and the dissatisfaction of the employees left within the business.

  • Do you know if you have a problem of staff retention? There is a tendency for business leaders to blame the people who have left the business when the problem is how business leaders manage staff retention.
  • Do you know if you’re wages and benefits are competitive in the marketplace? A leaky boat could become a sunk boat! You may need to adjust your business priorities to prevent future issues becoming catastrophic.
  • Could better use of existing staff not only improve the business, but boost the confidence and loyalty of existing staff to stay with the business for the long haul.
  • What other changes apart from P can your business make to encourage existing staff to stay and attract talent? many people know value flexible working opportunities over higher pay and that may keep your existing staff or attract new employees.

The fuller engagement of employees in the journey of the business can pay dividends in terms of staff retention and avoidance of service quality issues.

Upskilling your workforce is essential for retaining and attracting new talent.

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You may need to change your approach if resourcing is causing business development problems. The cause of your skills gap maybe your own doing or maybe a marketplace issue. Either way your skills gap will need to be addressed if it is to stop impeding your business progress. What is your plan to fill your skills gap?

Strategies for managing employee shortages

Women hold up half the sky

How does gender affect risk taking in business

Men and women are equal. Perhaps more importantly men and women can bring a different risk management perspective to the table. Without one makes the business more vulnerable.

Business women networking online

Support for women in business

Men and women within the business need to be treated equally fairly to ensure the business machine works most effectively.

There can be gender differences in risk taking so an effective holistic risk management strategy requires balanced workforce making decisions on strategy operations and projects. Indeed a balanced risk management strategy requires ethnic equality as well as gender equality.

It is not about male employees v female employees

Men and women see threats and opportunities in different ways. How they respond to business risks is therefore different. Your business enterprise risk management strategy needs to recognise risk perception gender differences. The differences present the opportunity for a competitive advantage if the competition have not acknowledged and addressed this aspect of business culture. Your risk assessment process should take account of gender issues.

It is about creating a balanced all inclusive holistic enterprise risk management strategy for faster business growth with less uncertainty

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Make sure gaps in risk protection are filled. Make sure opportunities for business growth are not missed. For both of these important elements it is important that women are present at executive and senior manager level. For example drafting in a women from a lower level will not counter gender risk taking issues.

The risk management strategy needs to be written up on basis of equality in the boardroom not by having equality within a risk assessment workshop.

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Women need to be fully embedded in all aspects of the business decision making process to benefit from their risk knowledge and experience. Include their business risk perspective and experiences. Women are not better leaders than men or vice versa.

By leaving out women or ethnic minorities at senior management and executive level you may not get the big picture on risk management. Inequality in the boardroom can mean your business only achieves half its potential with the same assets. Indeed some of these assets women may decided to move to a more meritocracy driven business that values gender parity.

There is a growing skills gap in the UK and your business can not afford to miss the benefits of offering an equal opportunity career development environment.

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