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It is believed that closer cooperation between VET institutions and companies could contribute to the scale of the problem, which would contribute to more effective training of skilled workers.
There is a critical skilled labor shortage in the country
According to representatives of the Lithuanian Employment Service, the shortage of skilled workers has simply become critical in recent years and has more than doubled the demand for unskilled workers.
“This mismatch between supply and demand is due to many reasons: low qualification or a profession that is not in demand in the labor market, insufficient professional work experience, lack of specific knowledge, inability to work with a computer, low mobility. Youth employment is limited by lack of professional qualifications and lack of work experience, ”says I. Balnanosienė.
According to the director of the Employment Service, trade and vocational schools should jointly seek solutions to the increasingly serious problem.
“It is important that employers become more actively involved in the development and improvement of training programs, helping to identify the necessary competencies for representatives of individual professions. This would facilitate the solution of the problems of lack of qualified employees and the training of employees of the most suitable professions for their business, it would guarantee specialized professional training in the regions and would improve the quality of training and a faster reaction to changes. of the labor market. ”I. Balnanosienė teaches.
Closer cooperation would solve the problem.
According to Vytautas Zubras, president of the Lithuanian Association of Professional Education Institutions, professional schools cooperate and are willing to cooperate more closely, but they do not always know how to do it.
“Vocational school leaders say that it is often difficult to find business partners willing to develop cooperation. Not only knowledge, but also lack of time and human resources contributes to this,” says V. Zubras.
This was confirmed by a survey of directors of Lithuanian vocational training institutions commissioned by the Central Project Management Agency (CPMA) this spring. The results showed that almost a fifth of VET schools and training centers do not actively cooperate, although they have formed formal associations.
Lack of business participation
According to V. Zubro, the directors of vocational training institutions tend to cooperate with various business sectors: commerce, industry, construction, production and transformation, industrial engineering, transport and agriculture, associated business structures. The participation of the social welfare sector, the companies of the arts, architecture, information technologies and the media in the educational process would also be demanded.
“We have many good examples. Companies are involved in school activities, participate as stakeholders, active in the educational process. Various projects are being implemented with companies and business structures, and new vocational training programs are being prepared. However, the market situation shows that the effort is too low. Both parties, both schools and companies, must have the same interest in gaining momentum, show initiative and cooperate closely, “says V. Zubras.
In the opinion of the president of the Lithuanian Association of Professional Education Institutions, more events are needed to promote cooperation between business enterprises and professional schools. Trainings for school leaders, vocational teachers, business teachers involved in the process of teaching students would also be helpful.
After the internship – employment
Among the most attractive forms of cooperation with business enterprises, V. Zubras mentions not only internship and apprenticeship opportunities, but also student employment and assisting young people to obtain qualifications. Directors of vocational schools would also like to work together on career guidance, the development of professional training programs, and the development of new ones.
According to the head of the Employment Service I. Balnanosienė, cooperation with vocational training institutions and business participation in the training process should be understood as a direct investment of time and financial resources in the adequate supply of qualified labor.
“Employers could participate more actively in apprenticeship programs, because in this way, already during training, the future employee acquires the necessary professional skills in a specific job, learns to work with teams, adapts to the culture and internal company processes. Such an employee is likely to work in the company for a longer period of time and create greater added value already after training, ”says I. Balnanosienė.
This year, the CPMA launched a communication campaign “Professions for companies”. During this campaign, an electronic platform will be created, where companies will be able to find contacts of Lithuanian vocational schools who wish to participate in the campaign. Good examples of cooperation between professional schools and companies are also shared. A survey of vocational school leaders in April this year showed that vocational schools lack advertising. Success stories would encourage more students to choose a profession.
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