Wales Could See 117% Surge in Engineering Construction Roles
The engineering construction industry (ECI) workforce in Wales could increase by 117% in the next five years if new nuclear projects in North Wales go ahead, new research suggests.
The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) said the ECI plays a crucial role in the UK meeting its net zero ambitions, spanning sectors that focus on the construction, maintenance and decommissioning of heavy industry, including oil and gas, nuclear, power generation, renewables, chemicals, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and water treatment.
The ECITB's Labour Forecasting Tool (LFT) provides insights into workforce numbers across regions and sectors, predicting trends and potential future demand for workers in the industry.
The tool, which was first launched in November 2023, has been updated using findings from the ECITB 2024 Workforce Census and publicly stated timescales on 3,000 active and future ECI projects across Great Britain.
The ECITB's latest forecast states that the size of the ECI workforce in Wales could grow by 4,460 by 2030, with scaffolders, design technicians and general operatives among the roles most in demand.
The predicted 117% increase is largely dependent on building work starting on the new nuclear power plant at Wylfa in Anglesey, North Wales, which was earmarked as a preferred site by the previous UK Government.
This would bring thousands of jobs and investment to the area, says the ECITB. However, if the nuclear plant is not built, or the project incurs delays, the tool forecasts the ECI workforce may only grow by 550 in Wales, an increase of 14%.
The revised predictions were possible thanks to a record response rate from industry employers for the latest iteration of the ECITB Workforce Census.
The ECITB Workforce Census 2024 offered a comprehensive overview of the ECI workforce in Wales, having gathered data on more than 2,200 workers, covering distribution across sectors, demographic trends, hiring challenges and business opportunities.
ECITB Chief Executive Andrew Hockey said:
'A key objective of the Foundations pillar of our Leading Industry Learning strategy is to produce impactful labour market intelligence to enable data-driven decision-making.
'The significant Census response rate enabled the ECITB to provide more precise, up-to-date data for the benefit of industry. It allows us to improve the LFT to help make better predictions on future workforce trends and labour demands in Wales.
'The updates to the LFT reinforce the scale of the challenges facing industry that were outlined in our Workforce Census Report, which revealed that 80% of ECI employers in Wales are experiencing challenges hiring workers.
'It also highlighted an upcoming wave of possible retirements, with the share of workers over 60 in Wales increasing from 11% to 14.6% since 2021. Also, the number of workers under 30 decreased from 18% of the workforce to 12.1% in the space of three years.
'We recognise addressing skills shortages in Wales requires a collaborative, multi-agency approach that includes employers, governments, training providers and the ECITB.
'So, we're calling on all of industry to work together to help increase the pool of people joining the ECI, while continuing to train and upskill existing workers.
'By investing in the workforce, the industry has a fighting chance of closing the skills gap and ensuring the ECI has the skilled workforce it needs both for now and the future.'
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