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MERSEYSIDE EMPLOYERS MAKE THE SKILLS PLEDGE
MERSEYSIDE'S
leading employers made a firm commitment to boosting the area’s
skills when they gathered at a Skills Pledge Roadshow, held 20.5.08
at Liverpool Cathedral.
David Lammy, Minister for Skills was joined by Steven Broomhead,
Chief Executive of the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA)
at the event, organised by Liverpool Chamber of Commerce in
partnership with the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) North West.
Dantech UK, Wincanton and the FRC Group were amongst the area’s
businesses that put their weight behind the Skills Pledge, through
which employers commit to supporting their employees to develop
basic skills and gain a relevant qualification to a minimum of NVQ
Level 2, the equivalent of 5 GCSEs.
Employers can access support to
deliver on their Skills Pledge through Train to Gain, a service
managed and funded by the LSC that helps businesses find the
training they need for their employees and provides funding towards
the cost of training.
Five employers showed a united front by making the Skills Pledge at
the event, and in doing so, demonstrated the importance of investing
in workforce skills, in a bid to increase their productivity and in
turn, improve the economic performance of Merseyside.
Addressing the audience David Lammy said:- “As the Skills
Pledge approaches its first anniversary almost 2,500 organisations
employing 3.7 million people have made the Pledge.
It’s an excellent
start, but there’s still a great challenge ahead.
The success
of the UK economy is inextricably linked to the skills of its
workforce and we must ensure that our people have the right training
and qualifications to match the changing needs of business.
I’d like to congratulate all the
employers that have shown their dedication to their employees by
making the Skills Pledge today.
I hope that
this strong support for the Pledge will encourage other Merseyside
employers to get on board and follow their lead.”
John Korzeniewski, Regional Director of the LSC in the North West
added:- “People are an employer’s greatest asset; so investing
in them makes sound business sense.
Simply by committing to upskilling their workforce and creating a clear path for staff
development, businesses are not only helping to increase the
nation’s skills levels but are securing their long term commercial
health.” |
Since credit crunch almost half of Britons less likely to sign
contracts!!!
A new survey
for AOL Broadband ‘Wireless Flexi’ has found that 44% of
British consumers are now less likely to take out a contract for a
service as a result of the credit crunch. The finding comes at a
time of heightened economic instability, and highlights the
reluctance of people to sign up to long term financial commitments. The survey asked 1000 adults aged 18+ about their attitudes to
contracts and commitments of all types, be it relationships, loyalty
or utility contracts.
Further to this, 47% of respondents say that since the credit crunch
their contracts make them feel pinned down, and a massive 79% of
respondents said that they would choose a no-contract service over
an identical one based on a contract. The evidence suggests that
Britain is gearing up for a no-ties 'Free-Me' approach to
their financial outgoings.
A mercenary 66% of British people however, say they do not mind
signing a service contract if it gets them a better overall deal,
and further to this 34% like the security of being in a service
contract.
David Pagliari, Executive Director of Sales and Marketing of AOL
Broadband said:- “We all know that the long term commitment of
a mortgage has become more difficult since the credit crunch took
hold, but what this research shows is that we are now far more wary
about entering into any long term contracts. I think the message is
that consumers now expect the flexibility to choose whether they
sign up to a contract for their services or not. It is clearly an
important factor, with 79% of our respondents saying that contracts
or the lack of them are a deciding factor when looking at services. Our new Wireless Flexi package offers wireless broadband with no
minimum term and no cancellation fee.”
Part of this desire for flexibility may be reflected in the fact
that 59% of people in Great Britain have switched from one supplier
to another for services provided to them in the last 12 months. Particularly high on the list of services that have been switched is
home broadband, 25% of people with home broadband have switched
Internet supplier during this time. Insurance was the only service
above it, with 28% saying that has switched insurance providers in
the last month.
Elsewhere the survey found that 68% of the respondents felt tied
down by some aspect of their lives. The top three things in life
that made them feel tied down were Job (31%), mortgage (27%) and
service contracts (21%). Surprisingly the age group that felt the
most tied down was the 25-34 year olds (81%).
While people are spurring commitments and opting for a ‘Free-Me’
lifestyle, with 62% of the population saying that they want more
flexibility in their lives, it seems that the exception to this rule
is our relationships. We value close friendships, most of the
country (78%) tend to have a small number of long-term friends that
they stay in touch with, while 19% say they tend to have lots of
friends that fit in with their current lifestyle. Also, 72% of us
are in, or are looking for a serious relationship.
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