UK workers think their colleagues lack the training to do their jobs properly

More than half of workers think their colleagues lack the training to do their jobs properly, a recent survey has found.

The Association of Colleges (AoC) polled 1,200 staff in the UK and asked them about their own training needs and those of their colleagues. It found the following:

• 53% of respondents said their colleagues needed more training to do their jobs properly
• 30% said they needed more training to do their jobs properly
• 55% said they would choose a different course of study to the one they followed if they had the chance
• 64% said the government should tell employers to create annual individual training programmes for staff
• 57% said they would use independent career advice if they had access to it.

There were regional variations, with more than one-third of respondents in the south-east of England saying they need more training to do their jobs properly, compared to one-quarter in Wales and the South West. Some 55% of those polled in the Midlands thought their colleagues needed more training to do their jobs properly, while 48% of those in Wales and the South West thought that was the case.

AoC acting chief executive Sue Dutton said: “These findings indicate that the appetite for training among the British workforce runs in tandem with real regret at missed opportunities. While employers can do more to respond to individuals’ needs, an impartial and effective careers service is needed to make sure more people make the right training choices the first time round.”

The research was conducted on behalf of the AoC by ICM Research at the end of October 2007. It polled 1,222 adults by phone and e-mail.