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TUC launches long-term initiative to tackle skills shortages

The new programme, called the 2050 Skills Project, will develop proposals for a worker-focused skills strategy designed to improve access to training and support economic growth.

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TUC launches long-term initiative to tackle skills shortages
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The TUC has launched a long-term skills initiative bringing together trade unions, employers and education providers to address skills shortages and prepare workers for changes driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and the transition to net zero.

The new programme, called the 2050 Skills Project, will develop proposals for a worker-focused skills strategy designed to improve access to training and support economic growth.

The initiative brings together organisations including the British Chambers of Commerce, Make UK and the Association of Colleges, alongside unions and education experts.

The TUC said years of underinvestment in adult education and workplace training had contributed to skills shortages across the economy, with nearly nine million adults lacking essential literacy, numeracy or digital skills.

The union body also pointed to regional inequalities, with qualification levels varying significantly across different parts of the country, while employer investment in training remains below the European average.

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Paul Nowak, general secretary of the TUC, said: “Britain is being held back by a persistent skills crisis. The problem isn’t a lack of talent – it’s years of underinvestment in the skills people need to succeed.

“But this is a pivotal moment. We need to go further and faster to equip workers with the skills they need for the jobs of today and tomorrow.”

He added: “Too many people risk being shut out of a rapidly changing labour market because they haven’t been given the opportunity to retrain and adapt.”

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Kate Shoesmith, director of policy and insights at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “BCC research shows that more than half of businesses are facing skills shortages.

“This is a serious drag on productivity and growth.

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“We need a coherent skills system which enables firms to respond to the compounding challenges of AI, an aging workforce, higher employment costs and record numbers of young people out of work.”

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Robert Halfon, executive director for policy, membership and external affairs at Make UK said: “Manufacturing has 51,000 vacancies it cannot fill, and skills shortages are costing the sector billions in lost output and growth.

“The Industrial Strategy and its eight sector plans set the right direction, but they will only deliver if every rung of the ladder of opportunity is in place: quality apprenticeships to bring people in, and genuine lifelong learning to keep them climbing. 

“Too many firms are still struggling to find the people they need to invest, innovate and compete.

“Make UK welcomes this initiative, which brings unions, employers, colleges and government together to build the skilled, adaptable workforce manufacturing needs for the long term.”

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David Hughes, chief executive at Association of Colleges, added: “I am so pleased that the Association of Colleges is part of the TUC’s new taskforce on skills.

“The data tells us, time and time again, that the UK is facing a critical skills crisis. We know that this is a consequence of underfunded and underappreciated adult education and training, with government and employer investment far lower now than 20 years ago.

“It is a situation that the new prime minister must set right because adults are missing out on opportunities to learn the new skills they will need in a changing world, and as a result, employers are struggling to find the people they need with the skills needed to be productive.

“We need a shift to a lifelong learning culture, backed up by actions from government, employers, colleges, unions and others. I’d like to see a long-term government strategy which builds interest and investment for adults of all ages.

“Colleges are vital places where adults will access the skills they need, and I know they will want to engage with the Taskforce over the coming months.”

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