The availability of skilled labour following the UK’s exit from the European Union is the post-Brexit issue of most concern to business leaders who took part in a series of board room debates hosted by Danske Bank.
The bank has held four Danske Bank Advantage lunches in the past month with businesses from different sectors and regions of Northern Ireland.
Following the UK’s referendum vote to leave the EU, business leaders expressed concern about a number of ‘unknowns’ for the local economy. One of the most common themes was the potential for restrictions on access to the EU’s labour market and skills.
Shaun McAnee, Managing Director of Corporate Banking, said: “There has been a lot of debate and discussion with our customers over the last few weeks and we have listened intently to what business owners have been telling us.
“Among the most pressing issues that came to the fore were access to skills beyond Brexit, the need for migrant workers in our economy, the state of local apprenticeships and the impact of the living wage on Northern Ireland companies.”
Many businesses told Danske Bank they were reliant on both skilled and non-skilled workers and need clarity on whether these people will be able to remain once the UK leaves the EU. If they can’t, business leaders have serious doubts about their ability to recruit qualified people to replace them locally.
Mr McAnee said: “Business owners around the table told us that if migrant workers leave, people coming out of college are often not ‘work ready’ enough to fill the gaps and where jobs are unskilled they don’t believe there are enough local people who will want to do them.
“There is also uncertainty about the implementation of the government’s Apprenticeship levy. Several companies said current apprenticeship schemes do not work for them and noted that, while the cost of the levy is known, they don’t yet know the structure or whether it provides value for money.”
The boardroom lunch events heard attendees share experiences of how they are coping with a weaker Sterling exchange rate since the referendum vote. Some said they had hedged in advance but warned the supply of hedged currency is running out and higher input prices will soon need to be passed on.
The rising cost of doing business – including costs such as auto-enrolment pensions and the increase in the living wage – were also cited as challenges, while the need for higher spending on infrastructure and improved public sector procurement were identified as requiring focus.
Shaun McAnee added: “The general consensus in all of the meetings is that, while we wait to see what Brexit means, ambitious companies are pressing on and trying to win new business. But we also got feedback that suggests customers are holding off on major strategic investment decisions until there is greater clarity, which is concerning.”
“One thing that all of the business leaders at our series of meetings agreed on is that over the coming months and years, we will require strong leadership from our politicians, both at Westminster and at Stormont.”
