6/9/13 European Digital Skills Shortage Looms - Tech Europe - WSJ

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March22,2012,7:53AMGMT

ByNick Clayton

ThecomingdecadealreadythreatenstobedifficultforyoungpeopleacrosstheEuropeanUnion.Nowanewreportsuggestsmorereasonswhytheyshouldworry.Itsaysvacancieswillrise,buttheyouthwillnothavethedigitalskillstofillthem.

TheInformationDailyreports:

By2015,90%ofjobswillneedeskills.ThenumberofICTpractitionersinEuropewas4.7millionin2007andisforecastto

reach5.26millionin2015.Inmoregeneralterms,jobsforhighlyqualifiedpeopleareexpectedtoriseby16millionbetween

nowand2020,whilethoseheldbylowskilledworkerswilldeclinebyaround12million.

ThefigurescomefromareportpreparedfortheEuropeanCommissiontotieinwiththelaunchofEuropeanESkillsWeek.ItsuggeststhatdespitetheeconomicdownturnICTrepresents5%ofGDP,hascontinuedtogrowatanannualrateof3%,butwillsufferashortageof700,000professionalsby2015.

Additionally,Europefacesgrowingunemploymentwith23millionpeopleoutofwork,andyouthunemploymentat21%.

TheOECDhasproducedresearchindicatingthathighereducationhasaquantitativeimpactonemployabilityand

earningspotential.Statisticsreleasedin2011showthatacrosstheOECDcountries,83.6%ofpeoplebetween25and64withtertiaryeducationwereinemployment,comparedto56%ofthosewithoutanuppersecondaryeducation.Similarly,the

earningsgapbetweenpeoplewithhighereducationandthosewithouthasbeenestimatedat57%.

Inthiscontext,thecrisisrevealeddeepstructuralweaknessesinourlabourmarkets.Theunemploymentratehitanewhighat

10.1%intheEUinJanuary2012.Youthunemploymentreachedanewhistorichighof22.4%.Itishigherthan20%inabout

European Digital Skills Shortage Looms

6/9/13 European Digital Skills Shortage Looms - Tech Europe - WSJ

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twothirdsofcountriesandcloseto50%inSpainandGreece,whileitislessthan10%inGermany,Austriaandthe

Netherlands.ThisgrowingdemandcontrastswithadecreasingnumberofICTgraduatessince2005.

ThesefigurescomedespiteanEskillsforthe21stCenturystrategylaunchedfiveyearsagobytheEuropeanCommission.Thechallengeremainsthatknowledgeworkersjobsaregenerallyhighlymobile.MostcanmovetoanywherewithanInternetconnectioniftherightskillsarethere.

TheInformationDaily:eSkillsWeek2012:ThereIsAJobWaitingForYou