8 out of 10 businesses do not believe school leavers are ready for work and say more should be done to help prepare them for employment.
Survey results from businesses which already employ 16 to 17-year-olds reported that their employees had poor literacy, numeracy and communication skills.
Members of the Federation of Small Businesses strongly felt that improving basic literacy and numeracy skills would better prepare young people for work in a small business. With figures showing there are still a million young people without work, the FSB is concerned that young people not equipped with these abilities will find it tough to compete in today’s job market.
Of the survey respondents that employ 16 to 17-year-olds, 77% also found that general business awareness was poor among school leavers.
It was therefore suggested that early careers guidance and preparing young people with CV writing, time-keeping, problem solving and team working skills would not only assist employers, but would help in giving young people a better understanding of potential jobs and career paths.
