Boosting skills, jobs in difficult climate

Only a day after Joseph Muscat officially launched an ‘initiative’ meant to generate skills and new jobs, Brussels cast yet another gloomy forecast of the employment situation in the EU. It reflects the widespread turmoil across a number of countries in Europe over the growing impact the austerity measures are having on the lives of millions of workers.

The way ahead remains uncertain as, according to the forecast, the recession is worse than expected, with unemployment figures hitting record levels. Particularly worrying is the high level of youth unemployment.

The job situation in Malta is nowhere near that of other countries, but the figure is rising as well. In March, the jobless figure stood at 6.5 per cent, up by 0.2 per cent.

Keeping to the pattern prevalent in other countries, the highest rate was among the under 25s, reaching 14.7 per cent, a rise of 0.6 per cent.

The fact that Malta has been able to contain the effects of the recession does not mean that the way ahead is now clear. In the economic climate that has developed following the financial crisis and recession, it will be harder to generate economic growth.

Efforts will have to be stepped up to remove obstacles to growth and make the island more efficient than it is today. Idle manpower needs to be re-activated, which is where the initiative launched by the Prime Minister comes in. It is based on an active labour market policy drafted by the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin.

What makes the initiative most interesting is that it has the blessing of all the social partners. In theory, this should go a long way towards fashioning the right programmes to translate words into deeds. Putting the theory into practice can be more difficult than the promoters think, but an action committee has been set up to monitor its implementation.

Bridging the gap between education and industry’s requirements is not something that has been thought of now. The aviation and financial sectors would not have grown to become such important economic segments had the island’s education set-up not provided workers with the right skills for the jobs required.

Clearly, however, far more has to be done to tap idle human resources and to encourage young people with no aptitude for higher education to take up training in skills needed by old and new economic sectors.

According to the UĦM study, no fewer than 9,000 under 40s were classified as long-term benefit dependants in 2011. Five thousand women over 40 could also be drawn to the market.

Incentives, subsidies and childcare centres would naturally help to encourage idle workers to go back to work, but there would need to be greater coordination in the efforts, roping in also the Employment and Training Cooperation.

The Government plans to utilise EU funds for the programmes it has in mind. This is not a bad idea so long as the wheels of the organisation needed to get the funds on time are well oiled. According to the Prime Minister, specific programmes will be identified and implemented as from next year.

However, the gap between the launching and implementation of the initiative is far too big. If the Government and social partners mean what they say, ways and means should be found to reduce it. There is no time to lose.

And, of course, for the programme to succeed, there would first have to be economic expansion.