Two-thirds of companies still unable to find skilled workers

Two-thirds of Malta’s companies say they are unable to find the “required specialised skills” in the local labour market, a study by EY has found.

Conducted between July and August, the study aims to shed light on Malta’s market skills set amid growing concerns workers do not have the necessary skills required by employers. It was carried out among 120 executives operating in foreign direct investment companies and representing a cross section of sectors.

The EY study showed that although there was a slight improvement over the previous year, difficulties to find skilled workers persist. In 2021, the figure was marginally higher at 69 per cent. 

“In 2022, 66 per cent reported not being able to find the required specialised skills in the local labour market. However, this is a slight improvement on the last year, which indicates that the challenge is being tackled on several fronts and, positively, not worsening further,” EY researchers said.

The rate had peaked in 2019 when it stood at 73 per cent after having been on an upward trend in the years prior to that.

EY noted that skills shortages are “a perennial problem for most European countries”. Locally, the trend had been...