Young people across Europe are leaving their jobs – and companies are struggling to fill the gaps

According to a recent report, more and more young people across Europe are leaving their jobs – and this is becoming one of the biggest hurdles companies face in tackling skills shortages.

New figures show that 60% of talent managers say the trend of quitting among younger workers and the difficulty they face in finding new employees with the right skills means they are unable to fill their skills gaps.

The pandemic and subsequent economic and geopolitical instability, which has led to record inflation in much of Europe, have given rise to trends such as the so-called “Great Resignation” and “Silent Resignation.”

Many younger workers in particular felt they were not treated fairly and often worked harder for less money, especially as prices rose faster than their wages.

A survey of thousands of talent managers, learning and development professionals, and those working at various levels in organizations across the UK, France, Germany and the US revealed the difficulties these trends are causing businesses.

Turnover of younger employees has been a particular problem for UK HR managers. 60% of them said that this is the biggest challenge they face in terms of skills shortage.

In their report “The Global State of Upskilling and Reskilling 2023,” analysts from learning platform 360Learning also found that the loss of knowledge of the older generation as they retire is the biggest obstacle for more than a third of HR managers surveyed.

In France and the USA, the biggest challenge was finding a sufficient number of new employees with the right skills.

According to David James, chief learning officer at 360Learning, the skills shortage is putting “significant pressure” on many types of companies as institutional knowledge is lost through the departure of retirees and the turnover of younger employees.

“The result is that demand for talent far outstrips supply,” James said. “To address this, employers must create a culture of continuous learning and give their teams the tools and opportunities to expand their skills.”