Government hopes that the private sector will provide jobs for unemployed public sector workers look increasingly shaky, according to new research from uSwitchforbusiness.com. The study shows that far from welcoming public sector workers into their businesses, the majority of SME employers are actually put off employing them because of concerns over productivity, training and skills and even attitude.
Almost a quarter of SMEs (22%) intend to take on more staff in 2011. Unfortunately, these growth plans may prove of little benefit to redundant public sector employees as only 2% of employers stated that they would actively seek to recruit them. Nearly a quarter of small businesses (23%) would only look to recruit a public sector worker if it was for a role that they couldn’t otherwise fill. More damningly, one in ten (12%) would not be prepared to employ a public sector worker at all.
The biggest barrier seems to be SME owners’ negative perceptions of public sector workers – only 6% of private sector bosses believe that they’d fit in well in their business. Over half (55%) believe that public sector workers have unrealistic expectations regarding pay, holidays and employment terms while just one in ten (11%) agree that they are as productive as private sector workers.
Four in ten small business owners (41%) believe that there is a cultural issue that would make it very difficult for a public sector worker to successfully adapt to the private sector. Moreover, public sector workers may have a difficult time convincing potential employers of their expertise at interview, as a tiny 8% of bosses see them as ahead of the private sector in terms of training, up-to-date knowledge and skills.
Public sector redundancy is expected to increase dramatically in 2011 as the coalition Government continues to cut funding to education, the military, hospitals and local authorities. Despite the numbers of qualified public sector candidates that will flood the market, only 18% of SME business owners believe that the private sector will be able to pick up the slack from the expected job cuts. And this cannot be attributed to lack of confidence as 72% of SME owners think that their business will grow or at least retain its size in 2011.
James Constant, Director of uSwitchforbusiness.com, says: “The Government is pinning its hopes on the private sector being ready, willing and able to offer employment to redundant public sector workers. What it hasn’t grasped is that employers view public and private sector candidates very differently. Small businesses need workers that can fit in quickly, hit the ground running and add value to the bottom line – what this research shows is that there are grave doubts as to whether public sector workers can meet this demanding brief.
“Trading conditions are tough and business owners have to ensure their business is as agile and competitive as possible. Whether looking to expand or not, all businesses can benefit from looking at their overheads and ensuring that they are not paying more than they need to for the basics such as energy, telephone and broadband and insurance. It’s easy to take your eyes off these but paying more than competitors can have just as big an impact on your business as employing the wrong or right worker.”
Source : uSwitch.com Press Release
