Training professionals signal dissatisfaction with their employers
By Martin Kornacki (29-06-2009)
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There is considerable dissatisfaction among training professionals, arising from significant regional variations in their salaries and benefits, according to research published this week.
The survey, commissioned by recruitment firm, GPRS Recruitment, reveals that 56 per cent of qualified professionals employed by businesses providing workplace training would consider moving to another employer.
And researchers found that a quarter of nearly 4,500 work-based learning and further education professionals questioned across the UK believed they could earn more working elsewhere.
Debra McCallum-Cleghorn, head of staffing at GPRS Recruitment, said: “This survey should provide a wake-up call to work based learning organisations both small and large. Many companies focussing on NVQ achievement are under-supporting their staff regarding training and benefits, and the findings crystallise the need for re-alignment of salaries, specifically with regard to bonuses, if companies want to not only recruit but retain the best talent.”
Other findings point to the possible reasons for the widespread dissatisfaction: 81 per cent of those surveyed receive no regular performance related bonus, 19 per cent have received no pay increase in the past 18 months and 40 per cent said that their salary reviews are currently on hold.
And regionally the survey uncovers a striking north-south divide in employees’ attitude to their organisations.
In the North of England 83 per cent of respondents thought they could earn more with another employer, compared to 64 per cent in the central region and just 28 per cent of those in the South.
The report links these figures to salary findings, with northern respondents earning the least in all the positions surveyed, followed by their peers in the central region, and with southern training professionals coming out top for pay.
At the top of the salary scale training directors in the South earned an average of £6,000 more than their northern peers, with their average annual bonuses also trumping those awarded in the north by more than £5,000.
The freeze on salaries also seems to be disproportionally affecting northern training professionals. The majority of those surveyed in the north will not have their salaries reviewed in the foreseeable future, compared to 36% in the central region and 28% in the South.
However, when it comes to benefits, professionals in the North come off better, with more than half reporting that they receive a pension contribution from their employer, compared to a third of those surveyed in the central region and only a quarter in the South.
McCallum-Cleghorn concluded: “Investing in the training professionals that comprise your workforce makes good business sense - remaining competitive when it comes to staff skills is crucial during the downturn, and firms that stayed on track with staff learning during the last recession emerged in a stronger position than those that cut back.”
The survey, commissioned by recruitment firm, GPRS Recruitment, reveals that 56 per cent of qualified professionals employed by businesses providing workplace training would consider moving to another employer.
And researchers found that a quarter of nearly 4,500 work-based learning and further education professionals questioned across the UK believed they could earn more working elsewhere.
Debra McCallum-Cleghorn, head of staffing at GPRS Recruitment, said: “This survey should provide a wake-up call to work based learning organisations both small and large. Many companies focussing on NVQ achievement are under-supporting their staff regarding training and benefits, and the findings crystallise the need for re-alignment of salaries, specifically with regard to bonuses, if companies want to not only recruit but retain the best talent.”
Other findings point to the possible reasons for the widespread dissatisfaction: 81 per cent of those surveyed receive no regular performance related bonus, 19 per cent have received no pay increase in the past 18 months and 40 per cent said that their salary reviews are currently on hold.
And regionally the survey uncovers a striking north-south divide in employees’ attitude to their organisations.
In the North of England 83 per cent of respondents thought they could earn more with another employer, compared to 64 per cent in the central region and just 28 per cent of those in the South.
The report links these figures to salary findings, with northern respondents earning the least in all the positions surveyed, followed by their peers in the central region, and with southern training professionals coming out top for pay.
At the top of the salary scale training directors in the South earned an average of £6,000 more than their northern peers, with their average annual bonuses also trumping those awarded in the north by more than £5,000.
The freeze on salaries also seems to be disproportionally affecting northern training professionals. The majority of those surveyed in the north will not have their salaries reviewed in the foreseeable future, compared to 36% in the central region and 28% in the South.
However, when it comes to benefits, professionals in the North come off better, with more than half reporting that they receive a pension contribution from their employer, compared to a third of those surveyed in the central region and only a quarter in the South.
McCallum-Cleghorn concluded: “Investing in the training professionals that comprise your workforce makes good business sense - remaining competitive when it comes to staff skills is crucial during the downturn, and firms that stayed on track with staff learning during the last recession emerged in a stronger position than those that cut back.”
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