Regulation for survival: training and skills in the construction labour market in Jersey, Channel Islands

Abstract

There is a crisis in the vocational training provision of the Channel Island of Jersey's construction industry that has similarities with the British situation. Unavailability and inappropriateness of skills, nonviability of current training and recruitment policies on the island, fragmentation of the training infrastructure, the demand-driven and task- or job-specific nature of training, the Jersey-born and male focus of recruitment, and the uncoordinated, traditional and short-term approach of the local construction industry towards promotion and financing of training provision were found to be working against the industry's long-term needs and restricting its ability to respond to the variability of the production process. In contrast, a structured training policy incorporating the needs of both education and industry (employee and employer), and holding a longterm vision should enable the construction industry of Jersey to reverse the downward spiral.