Half of companies have a hard time recruiting new staff, survey finds

Half the firms find it difficult to hire new staff, according to a survey. The Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) at the London School of Economics and Political Science also found one in five are struggling to retain existing staff, as they seek alternative places.

Experts say the government needs to do more to encourage enterprises to invest in training, such as encouraging tax credits and changing the apprenticeship tax levy. As the report 'Policies that provide incentives for human capital investments will support job transitions across sectors, occupations and firms.

Revenue from the vaccine soared in the first quarter after restrictions were lifted in the spring and the vaccine began to be introduced. However, the trend has also stalled since October, with some firms seeing an increase or drop in their operations. Swati Dhingra, co-author of the report, believes that qualifications are key to "addressing labour shortages" and "promoting productivity, wages and social mobility"