Opinion

Farmer review: an honest appraisal of industry’s problems

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Comments

  1. I have been involved in the construction Industry for 34 years this year, and we have seen a very sudden decline in apprentices, which in my opinion is down to 2 things, the first is over zealous safety compliance with CSCS cards and H&S tests The second is that NVQ qualifications are completely valueless, they are at best poor, and so easily gained they have no value whatsoever.
    The Industry is hard, out in all weathers, there are no schemes which help people who are wiling to work hard, a little bit of help when needed unlike agriculture farmers get paid to do nothing. Self employed construction workers get nothing, if they don’t work they don’t get paid. you only have to look at the average age of the construction worker now, and it is rising, which is very bad news indeed. So how do we fix it….
    1 Make it easier to get young people involved in the industry.
    2 Pay them a skill related level of pay, to keep them in the industry.
    3 Become more innovative, the methods we still use have not changed in 30 years, better use of technology throughout the industry, we have it, lets use it.

  2. Good not before time the C.I.T.B. was looked in to in some depth.
    Well done.

  3. In Ireland we are facing a similar future,as a former carpenter who left the profession and entered into higher education, i can see that with out providing a future for people in the construction sector it is impossible to create a sustainable workforce.Nobody wants to work in an industry that cant provide certainty into the future. And as said previously it is a hard place to work,with little or no thanks at the end of it

  4. Sadly, the CITB review will not be aimed at improving its appalling record on training for the construction industry. Farmer is clear, higher levies and creating barriers to rebates, making them even further out of reach to SME’s, who contribute most to the CITB but gain least, and more cash diverted to companies wishing to reduce quality and dumb down the industry to allow them to pay lower wages.

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