INNOVATIONS IN EMPLOYABILITY

DG1 – Hoods Loaning, Dumfries

2 December 2011

2

OBJECTIVES OF EVENT

1. To discuss what employability means for you and the people you work with

2. To learn from each other’s experiences working with a range of different groups of clients

3. To uncover common issues you confront in working to enhance the employability of your clients

4. To come up with a set of innovative solutions that will benefit your clients

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THE CONTEXT

1. Unemployment has been rising pretty much everywhere since the summer of 2008

• For Scotland, the increase in people on Jobseekers Allowance has been nearly 60,000 (76%)

• For Dumfries and Galloway, the increase has been nearly 1,000 (48%)

• Currently there are just over 3,000 on Jobseekers Allowance in Dumfries and Galloway

2. As with all parts of the UK most unemployed people are not on JSA• Dumfries and Galloway has 6,760 on ESA or IB and a further 1,100

are lone parents claimants• Numbers in these groups have fallen since the summer of 2008 but

at a much slower rate than for Scotland as a whole

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THE CONTEXT (CONT)

3. In terms of long term unemployment in Dumfries and Galloway• 21% of lone parents (230) have been on benefits for 5 years of

more• 66% of folks on IB/ESA (around 4,500) have been on benefits for

5 years or more

4. Particular concerns surround youth unemployment • Around 1,000 of Dumfries and Galloway’s JSA claimants are

under 25• However, this excludes 16 and 17 year olds not in education,

employment or training• Additionally, many young people have stayed on in school or

gone to college who would otherwise have tried to get into the labour market

• Looking at official unemployment numbers and rates the problem of youth unemployment is clear to see

5

Unemployment Rates, Dumfries and Galloway

0

5

10

15

20

25

30M

ar-0

8

Jun

-08

Sep

-08

Dec

-08

Mar

-09

Jun

-09

Sep

-09

Dec

-09

Mar

-10

Jun

-10

Sep

-10

Dec

-10

Mar

-11

16-24 25-64

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THE CONTEXT (CONT)

5. So much of this is driven by the economy and the demand for labour• Number of monthly vacancies notified to JobCentre Plus in

Dumfries and Galloway dropped by 20% between autumn 2009 and autumn 2011

• For most recent 3 months 670 vacancies notified – allowing for under-reporting this could represent around 2,000 vacancies

6. The real concern is that as world economies slow down unemployment will continue to rise and possibly at an accelerated pace

• Economic growth in the UK needs to be above 2.0/2.5% per annum for a prolonged period if unemployment is to fall substantially

• Most recent government forecasts in Autumn Statement suggest growth well below 1% per year for the next 2 years or so

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IMPLICATIONS

1. Unemployment is a problem that is not going to go away in short run

2. As labour market deteriorates some groups suffer more than others:• People outside the labour market trying to get in including young

people leaving education• Those already among the more disadvantaged

3. This means:• We need to make the employability and other resources available

work harder on behalf of our clients• We need to be always looking at how to do better and innovation

sits at heart of this process