New inititiave aims to boost productivity for employers

Businesses across the West Midlands are being offered an opportunity to boost their productivity with a new initiative titled ‘Fuller Working Lives’. The initiative is being launched in a partnership between the Department of Work and Pensions and the National Careers Service.

The initiative aims to help businesses and their employees aged over 50 overcome skills shortages. ‘Fuller Working Lives’ encompasses a range of free services that includes a skills gap analysis, training needs analysis and a mid-life career review. Careers advisers can also conduct Workforce Planning via a toolkit produced by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) that facilitates an age-diverse workforce.

Research conducted by the Department of Work and Pensions states that due to the widening skills gap in an ever-evolving labour market, older workers are leaving the workforce at an earlier age than they would like to choose. And in some cases, they may not have sufficient income for their future to sustain the lifestyle they would have envisaged.

Findings also demonstrate how working longer can improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and bring the benefits of a multi-generational workforce to businesses, which also highlights the importance of the ageing demographic to productivity and growth.

Ranjit Sohal, Employer Engagement Manager for the National Careers Service in the West Midlands said:

“The world of work is changing with digital innovation at the heart of the change. Automation and artificial intelligence are the two at key factors that are driving this transformation. Businesses can take full advantage of upskilling their staff to help cope with the digital skills demands that are required, and ensure that their workforce is acclimatised to the digital innovation that is sweeping our region’s workforce.”

For more information about this project, you can contact Ranjit Sohal on 0787 665 0209.