1. Workforce requirements: the basis for relevant occupational training

Abstract

By supplying the skilled workers needed, occupational training plays a fundamental role in the maintenance of a healthy economy. Although planners are not accountable for ensuring a perfect fit between training offerings and employment opportunities, they should anticipate shortages and surpluses of skilled workers. Decision makers can then take corrective action to expand, improve, curtail, or discontinue existing training or add new offerings. In order to discern skilled worker shortages/surpluses, the labour market demand must be determined. Workforce projection and forecasting approaches and labour market signalling approaches are used to make these determinations. The strengths and weaknesses of each approach must be considered when selecting the ones to use. Discusses a number of viable approaches and lists their strengths and weaknesses in tables to facilitate comparisons. Also includes supplemental instruments as examples and to provide guidance in determining workforce requirements. An appendix defines the terminology used.

Citation

Campbell, C.P. (1997), "1. Workforce requirements: the basis for relevant occupational training", Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 21 No. 8, pp. 279-297. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090599710184662