The “Hidden Jobs Market” is awash with opportunities
It’s all we seem to be hearing about nowadays. They are saying that artificial intelligence, machine learning and other advanced technologies are transforming every industry sector, and the world of work at breakneck speed. How we work, where we work, and the work we do, they say, are all changing. They are saying that 2017’s most in-demand skills, (1) according to LinkedIn, were largely unheard of a few short years ago. And according to the World Economic Forum, 65% of children now entering primary school (2) will be doing jobs which do not yet exist. And the Bank of England are saying that up to 15 million jobs in the UK may be lost to automation over the coming years, leaving millions unemployed and unemployable. Unsurprisingly, many are starting to feel daunted and discouraged.
But we must not lose sight of the fact that today’s jobs marketplace is in fact awash with good opportunities. According to labour market researchers, approximately 750,000 job vacancies in the UK go unfilled at any given time. The problem is, most are hidden from general view.
Let’s get a little perspective. Advanced technology is not the only driver of change; geopolitical tensions, climate change, an aging population and the astonishing growth of the middle classes in the emerging markets, are all changing aspirations, decision making and our world of work. Entire new industries and new jobs requiring new skills are being created on the back of these changes. And employers up and down the country are complaining of a chronic shortage of skilled workers to do these jobs.
Some 12.5 million job vacancies (3) are being created in the UK between 2012 and 2022 as retirees and other workers leave the workforce. This is in addition to 2 million new jobs being created in the same time period which never existed before. Yet only 7 million young people (3) are entering the workforce during the same period. Do the math.
And here is the rub. Most job vacancies (career experts say up to 70%) (5) are never advertised. It’s not that employers are deliberately hiding job vacancies. Many simply find it easier and less costly to attract suitable applicants through their own professional networks, or through the networks of their existing employees, select recruiters and headhunters. This is the “hidden jobs market “, and it is awash with good opportunities.
This is the first of a series of articles bringing high quality jobs information and know how to the UK’s Caribbean community. We will shine a spotlight on new industries, new in-demand skills and pathways to new, lucrative job opportunities emerging in the jobs marketplace.
Our vision is for the Caribbean community to be among the first to have high quality jobs information, and “first mover advantage” in today’s rapidly changing jobs marketplace.
Penny Carballo-Smith
August 2017
Penny Carballo-Smith is the executive director of the social enterprise Future Think, and co-founder of the Caribbean STEM Coaching Club, a joint venture between Future Think, the Caribbean Diaspora for Science, Technology and Innovation-UK and the British Foundation of the University of the West Indies.
Sources
1 https://blog.linkedin.com/2016/10/20/top-skills-2016-week-of-learning-linkedin
2 http://reports.weforum.org/future-of-jobs-2016/chapter-1-the-future-of-jobs-and-skills/
3 https://age.bitc.org.uk/system/files/research/bitc-age_inthe_workplace_report.pdf
4 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/unemployment-down-as-more-people-in-work-than-ever-before