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Overqualified? - You won't be alone

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by Paul Ford

The LGA, a cross-party organisation that represents local councils across England and Wales, has released a report indicating that there is a serious risk of over six million people being either out of work or employed in a role they are over-qualified for by 2030.

Over 5 million low-skilled workers will be pursuing just over 2 million low-skill jobs.

9.5 million intermediate skilled role vacancies will have 12.7 million intermediate skilled candidates applying for them.

Only in the high-skilled roles category will the position be reversed, with 14.8 million workers available for 17.4 million positions.

Central Government is criticised by the LGA for operating a confusing and unfocused system to combat this, spread across 20 different national schemes, and spending £10.5 Billion a year to little effect. It unsurprisingly calls on the Government to devolve responsibility and funding to the local areas in which the funding is used, in order to combat the problem properly.

The Government is yet to respond, but whichever way it decides to go, it’s clear that the most secure path for your career is in the highly skilled category. And that means your education and learning doesn’t finish when you’ve left school, college or university. Experience will always count in your favour, but continuing to expand your knowledge and skill set can only become more and more valuable and make you more desirable to future prospective employers.

So for your next permanent role, take the long view. Look beyond the salary to the training possibilities; either in-house or the flexibility to undertake courses. If you’re moving from contract to contract, look at what skills or qualifications might take you forward. Make the time to learn, not just earn. It might just help safeguard your career.