Analysis of 10 million jobs posted across sectors since 2015 found that, while some roles have witnessed advertised salaries fall, those who can help businesses capitalise on technological advances are seeing salaries increase. There is also positive news for other roles across the board such as field service engineers (2.4% increase), production managers (2.2% increase) and engineering and technical directors (2.2%).
Mark Blay, director of Reed Engineering, said: “There is an acute shortage of candidates in engineering and manufacturing in the UK. We need 200,000 people per year with the right qualifications to meet demand from now until 2024, and there’s a massive shortfall that gives candidates the upper hand in the job market. Those with Level 3 qualifications and an understanding of robotics, artificial intelligence and additive manufacturing will have a key role to play in developing the future of the sector.
“The fear that ‘machines are going to take our jobs’ isn’t warranted – in fact automation will create jobs. However, a lot of training is still needed to take full advantage. We always ask clients what three things they definitely need to have from candidates, but we also ask what they can teach candidates to develop them once they have joined. With such rapid modernisation, no business will find the ready-made ‘perfect candidate’ – there has to be a strong element of training there too.”
