Employers lament shortage of skills

The existing skills of the country’s human resources and enterprises’ requirements are separated by quite a distance, according to a study by recruitment company Adecco titled “Employability in Greece.”

The survey of employers reveals that both job candidates and employees are lacking in the skills and features companies require, highlighting a major problem which affects competitiveness and growth and exacerbates unemployment.

Corporate officials identify this shortage of necessary skills among Greek employees as one of the main reasons that positions remain unfilled despite the high jobless rate, according to Adecco Greece director Constantinos Mylonas.

The study found that only 44 percent of employers surveyed said that staff responded adequately to the demands of the job, down from 64 percent in 2016, while 54 percent responded that they partly met requirements (against 36 percent last year).

The areas where companies identified employee weakness are “taking the initiative,” “ability to resolve complex problems” and “flexibility/adaptability.” The skills employers consider most necessary are “work ethos” (84 percent), “capacity to work as a team” (65 percent) and “flexibility/adaptability” (56 percent).