Impact of Poor Basic Skills: The Employer Perspective

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Basic Skills
Impact of Poor
The employer perspective
Trinh Tu

To estimate…Aims Evidence
The prevalence
of poor basic skills in the
workplace and its impact
on employers
The costs
and benefits
associated with public-
funded basic skills training
£
Systematic
literature review
Quantitative
data collection
In-depth case
studies

A minority of employers
perceive poor basic
skills to be an issue

perceive poor basic
5.5%
Literacy
gap only
3.5%
Numeracy
gap only
3%
Both
12%
Of workplaces
report a basic
skills gap

A minority of employers perceive poor
basic skills to be an issue
94%
92%
88%
87%
86%
84%
83%
No gap
Gap
Not required
4%
4%
4%
4%
4%
2%
3%
1%
4%
6%
7%
9%
12%
11%
% of employers in England
Communicate verbally with clients,
colleagues or subcontractors
Fully understand
written procedures
Use numerical data or information
correctly in day-to-day activities
Perform simple mental
arithmetic / calculations
Complete day-to-day
paperwork without errors
Respond in writing to
queries or complaints
Spot numerical
errors

perceive poor basic
5.5%
Literacy
gap only
3.5%
Numeracy
gap only
3%
both
8%
on performance?
Material impact
12%
Of workplaces
report a basic
skills gap

But there is evidence
of under-reporting

of under-reporting
Particular
issues for
SMEs
Absence of
HR systems
to identify
basic skills
problems and
put in place
solutions
HR
Higher level
qualifications
sometimes
used as a
proxy
Majority do
not specify
minimum
English or
maths in
recruitment
General lack
of awareness
of basic skills
requirements
for different
job roles

of under-reporting
Normal
business
processes
masking poor
basic skills
Reinforces
perception
that impact is
minimal; not
merit
investment in
training
Potential to
lock in
systematic
skills decline
among
employees
Widespread
use of
(precarious)
coping
mechanisms -
shadowing,
scaffolding
and peer
support

There are costs to
poor basic skills

50%
44%
38%
35%
25%
18%
Increased number
of errors
Prevented more efficient / new
processes being introduced
Additional costs
for training
Reduced product
/ output quality
Failure to comply with requirements
(e.g. H&S / quality requirements)
Higher volume of
customer complaints
43%
36%
33%
33%
26%
17%
Literacy
Numeracy
There are costs to
poor basic skills
Impact of basic literacy and numeracy gap (self-reported)

Limited appetite among
employers for formal
basic skills training

Limited appetite among
employers for formal
basic skills training
Basic skills training
in the last year
Nationally
15%
With a basic
skills gap
31%
Majority of
workplaces
with a basic
skills gap
have not
provided
training
… except where
that qualification
was deemed to
have an external
currency

Implications for
public-funded basic
skills provision

Implications for
public-funded basic
skills provision
Difficulty
identifying
impacts at
the firm
level
Not a
vehicle for
significant
changeof basic skills
provision is
as part of
apprenticeships
Employers
report a range
of business
benefits but
possibly
conflated with
apprenticeship
training
Low volume
and intensity –
an average of
2.4% of
employees
per workplace

Conclusions
Likely under-
reporting of
basic skills
deficits in
workplaces and
associated costs
Possibility of
systematic built-
in long-term skills
decline
Need to
understand how
collaborative
workplace
practices can
develop skills as
well as
compensate for
deficits
Consider funding
alternatives to basic
skills training
activities – peer
learning schemes,
support for reading
for pleasure and
other informal, non-
credentials based
activities

Impact of Poor Basic Skills: The Employer Perspective

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