How well equipped are national surveys to capture new approaches to training?

Abigail Taylor,Anne Green

doi:10.1080/13639080.2021.1969344

Abigail Taylor, Anne Green

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2021.1969344

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Abstract

ABSTRACT Recent employer and employee surveys in the UK highlight a decline in training participation, a reduction in training expenditure per employee and an increase in online training/e-learning. The Covid-19 pandemic adds impetus to considering training trends given the importance of skills for economic recovery. Many workers are adapting to work and learning increasingly moving online. The Covid-19 crisis accentuates the need for employees to upskill and reskill and participate in new ways of learning. But how well equipped are surveys to capture these new trends? This paper reviews the focus of employer and employee training surveys in the UK alongside findings from selected in-depth employer interviews on training trends. It identifies greater focus on formal than informal training in current surveys, and a narrow interpretation of informal training. It identifies a gap in understanding the different types, duration and value of some informal workplace learning, while recent workplace changes mean the distinction between on- and off-the-job training is becoming less useful than previously. To capture new approaches to learning, surveys need to focus more on who is responsible for workplace training, communities of practice and perceived benefits of training.

Highlights

Employer and employee surveys reveal changes in employees’ participation in, and employers’ approaches to, training
Given the increasing importance of digital learning and delivery, questions were added from the 2015 survey onwards relating to whether in the previous 12 months employers had arranged or funded online training, e-learning and other self-learning where the employee does the learning at a time of their choosing
The Skills and Employment Survey (SES) and the Labour Force Survey cover particular aspects of formal and informal training

Summary

Introduction

Employer and employee surveys reveal changes in employees’ participation in, and employers’ approaches to, training. They help to identify current and future vacancies, skills needs and skills gaps (ETF 2017). Skills and their deployment are key to innovation, productivity and economic growth. Understanding training trends is important given the need to adapt to challenges of technological change and digitalisation, and the ageing workforce. Individuals’ attributes and skills are increasingly important in how employability is conceived (Green 2016a)

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