A study of 1,000 UK adults found four in 10 admitted the coronavirus outbreak has been a ‘wake-up call’ – leaving them to ponder their employment prospects.
With 28 per cent of those polled currently furloughed, a further 47 per cent of employed adults fear they could yet find themselves in the same boat.
While 42 per cent are concerned they won’t have a position to go back to once the lockdown ends.
As a result, the study commissioned by PeopleCert found a quarter are attempting to upskill in the hope they will be indispensable or employable elsewhere.
36 per cent of those polled revealed their employer has offered them support in improving their existing skillsets.
The study also found more than a third of those polled have reconsidered their chosen career following the outbreak.
In fact, one in 10 are currently attempting to retrain for an entirely different job.
However 54 per cent fear they are too established in their current career to do something new.
But despite all the uncertainty at the moment, many are confident about their job prospects.
A fifth of those who have been furloughed revealed they feel optimistic about their career, with half using their time to learn something new with a view to boosting their existing skills.
The PeopleCert study carried out through OnePoll, found those polled have 10 core skills on average – with problem solving, team working and organisation the most common.
However the skill they would most like to improve upon is public speaking, followed by computing and assertiveness.
Further to this, a separate study of 1,000 business owners by PeopleCert found six in 10 job applicants lack the skills employers are looking for.
And two thirds also said filling vacancies with workers who have the desired competencies is one of their biggest challenges – even harder than retaining valued members of staff.
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