About 81% of companies experience difficulty in recruiting staff due to a shortage of skills, a survey released on Wednesday has found.
Known as the National Remuneration Guide, the survey, released by the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche, was conducted in February.
Spokesperson Louise Marx said there was a skills shortage of chartered accountants, information technology specialists, sales and marketing staff, lecturers and scientists.
”Seventy-six percent of respondents said that they had experienced a scarcity of affirmative action candidates. While there is certainly an unemployment problem in this country, a survey like this shows that there is a lack of skilled people in specific fields.
”Most of these categories require a certain level of experience, which many unemployed people do not have,” said Marx.
She said 35% of employers had to offer a premium to attract affirmative-action candidates.
When coming to staff turnover, the survey showed that most workers quit their jobs because of a lack of career advancement.
”Overall, the average staff who left their jobs from January 2006 to December 2006 was 12,3% compared with 11,6% for 2005,” said Marx.
In May, Employment Equity Commission chairperson Jimmy Manyi referred to South Africa’s skills shortage as an ”an urban legend”.
He said that companies experienced skills shortages only because white management refused to appoint black people. — Sapa