People and employment

Before the Industry Growth team heads off for the holidays, we wanted to share a few updates on recent publications and event of the past few weeks including a Skills England webinar on Advanced Manufacturing Skills, the DWP White Paper ‘Get Britain Working’,  the MAC Annual report and a report on compliance and enforcement of the National Minimum Wage in 2024.

If you have any questions on the below, Tanya will be working until lunchtime on 24^th December, and we will be back at work on 2^nd January. We wish you all a wonderful holiday season, and look forward to continuing to work together in 2025. 

Caroline, Tanya and Iliana

Skills England Advanced Manufacturing Skills webinar

On 25^th November, Skills England hosted a webinar on Addressing Skills Needs in Advanced Manufacturing with 44 attendees including a few representatives from food and drink manufacturing and officials from the Department of Education.

Skills England covered key points from its recent report: Skills England: Driving growth and widening opportunities. A few points to note:

• Advanced Manufacturing definition: Production processes that integrate advanced science and technology, including digital and automation, to manufacturing. Importantly ‘advanced’ refers to production processes rather than product.  FDF is working closely with DBT and Defra to ensure food and drink is included in the advanced manufacturing priority sector of the government’s Industrial Strategy.
• The manufacturing sector has the third highest skills shortage density (behind social care and education sectors) – with 42% of all manufacturing vacancies being hard to fill in 2022. Existing key shortages from across the sector include: metal machining setters and setter operators, sheet metal workers, welding trades, electroplaters and laboratory technicians.

Feedback from employers in the session included:

• Skills gaps are not consistent across even Advanced manufacturing - sub sectors are different but there are consistencies e.g. engineering

• Important to note regional differences and the lack of consistent funding 
• Perception of Manufacturing adds to the labour & skills issues
• Standards need to be broader - the move away form frameworks have led to a narrowness which isn't always helpful
• A plea not to change the whole skills system – there are some things that work well and we’d want to keep – and to ensure that changes are incremental – evolution not revolution
• Importance of Level 7 Apprenticeships and higher technical skills that will be needed for economic growth (one of the government’s key missions)
• Massive please to simplify the system for SMEs and ensure there is sufficient funding for them 
• Need to link demand to supply of training provision rather than just leaving to market forces
• Need for a flexible modular system for upskilling 

Skills England and Department of Education officials are now taking feedback away to review and provide advice to Ministers this month.

DWP ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper

In November 2024, the Rt Hon Liz Kendall MP, Secretary of State for Work and Pension, published the Department for Working and Pension White Paper ‘Get Britain Working’.  The White Paper sets out the different approach the labour government is taking to tackle the employment rate fall, transform the health system, assess the economic inactivity and drive investment.

Key findings from the paper:

• In the last five years Britain's employment rate has fallen significantly, noting the key role of the existing health system and its inability to support people of all ages with long term health issues.
• The government plans to take action and achieve an 80% employment rate, restoring Britain's former economic activity.
• To achieve this, the focus will be to break down barriers to opportunity and rebuild the labour market.
• The new Industrial Strategy and Local Growth plans, the Plan to Make Work Pay and its intention to bring together skills and health to reform the employment support via the newly presented White Paper, are key to reach its goal.
• The Paper also recognises the impact that Covid-19 has had in the economy along with demographic and technological changes.
• Amongst the key areas the government is planning to take action in are:
• contribution of the NHS,
• local support by mayoral authorities,
• delivery of a Youth Guarantee,
• creation of a new jobs and careers service and
• the role of UK employers in promoting and maintaining a healthy work environment.

The Government will bring forward a Green Paper in spring 2025 recognising the need for a change to the system of health and disability benefits across Great Britain,. In its effort to fix the foundations of the economy, the government will work closely, across devolved administrations, with Jobcentre Plus, the National Careers Service, several providers and voluntary organisations and more, including colleges, universities, trade unions and the NHS.

Migration Advisory Committee Annual Report

On 17^th December, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) published their annual report outlining the findings from their various commissions from 2024, including the creation of the Immigration Salary list and a review of the Graduate Route. It also covers an analysis of current migration data with recommendation to support the government’s policy to reduce net migration.

Key findings from the report include:

• Net migration between 2021 and 2023 was unusually high, mainly as a result of increased international students and non-European Union (EU) work immigration through the Skilled Worker route (most noticeably in health and care occupations).
• Linking immigration and skills policy is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach and it is important to consider the individual circumstances within sectors and occupations, including diagnosing whether shortages are genuinely driven by lack of skills or are due to poor pay and conditions of certain roles.
• Increasing the level of skills in the domestic labour pool does not guarantee a reduction in the reliance on the immigration system as migrant and domestic workers area not perfect substitutes and employers will often still seek the best possible match for their vacancy, which may be an international recruit.
• Therefore, the impact of investment in skills on immigration will vary by sector and occupation.

Interesting facts from report:

• From the 2022 sector-level data,  the proportion of vacancies in a sector caused by skills shortages were most concentrated in:
• Construction (52%)
• Information and Communications (43%)
• Manufacturing sectors (42%)
• Institute for Fiscal Studies estimate that average employer spending on training has fallen by 27% in real terms between 2011-2023.
• Falling apprenticeship availability in the UK is part of a landscape of falling investment in domestic training.

Future Work:

• The Home Secretary has set out the intention to launch a new Quad framework between the MAC, Skills England , the Industrial Strategy Council (ISC) and Department for Work and Pensions to address systemic long-term issues that have led to reliance from certain sectors on international recruitment, and where appropriate to reduce that reliance.
• MAC have asked government for greater clarity on how the Devolved Government’s will be included in the Quad Framework.
• In order to link devolved skills policy with immigration policy (stated as a goal of government), the different approached to askills across the UK and how the interact with a UK-wide immigration system must be considered. However if these challenges are no addresses, it could lead to unintended consequences for parts of the UK’s labour market.

Low Pay Commission report on Compliance and enforcement of the National Minimum Wage in 2024

On 19^th December the Low Pay Commission (LPC) published their annual report on compliance and enforcement of the National Minimum Wage (NMW).  The report recognises that with the new government a period of transition has begun with the Employment Rights Bill and the proposal for the creation of a new single enforcement body, the Fair Work Agency (FWA).  The FWA would bring together enforcement of the NMW alongside other workers’ rights.  The LPC sees this as an opportunity to address the shortcomings of the current approach to enforcement, but recognises that design and approach will be key to ensure that the new enforcement body works effectively.

The headline finding of the report is that an estimated 371,000 workers were underpaid in April 2025. This is slightly increased from 2023 but is below the estimated numbers from the pre-pandemic period.  Looking at the sector breakdown, food processing showed only slight increase in minimum wage underpayment levels of the adult rate since 2019, but with overall numbers lower than most UK sectors.

Key recommendations to the Government include:

• Government is urged to ensure adequate information is available for employees to know where and how to complain about underpayment.
• Government should look at improving the guidance on work type and the differences in calculated working time between salaries and unmeasured work.
• Ensure more regular naming rounds to create momentum and increase coverage.
• Expand the data HMRC collects on its caseload including:
• Whether underpayment is formal or informal
• The characteristics of underpaid workers involved
• The working arrangements of underpaid workers

On 16^th October Sheffield Hallam University’s National Centre of Excellence for Food Engineering is bringing partners across industry and academia to celebrate their 5 years of collaborative research and innovation in the food sector.

The event will include:

• Discussion on topics crucial to our sector including skills, recruitment, innovation and finance.
• The chance to meet NCEFE’s academic experts
• The opportunity to give a 2-minute challenge pitch
• Example of successful collaborations between NCEFE and industry
• A tour of the NCEFE specialist facilities for food research and innovation
• Presentations from SHU doctoral researchers on their current ground breaking research.

The event will be at the National Centre for Excellence for Food Engineering on Wednesday 16^th October, 9:45-13:45.  Tickets are free, and you can register your place here.

Future Planet, a collaboration network, is looking at how best to support organisations to identify and develop Green Skills.  The group, which includes senior leaders from several cross-sector organisations and representatives from the UK Government green skills task force, have pulled together a simple survey to understand what companies are already doing, and opportunities for future support and collaboration. 

If you are interested, please complete this 5 minute Green Skills survey*.

*Specific data will be seen by the working group, but individual companies won’t be referenced in any public disclosure, however please feel free to anonymise your responses if preferred.

Women in Manufacturing Equality, diversity and inclusion survey and interview request

The University of Cambridge Women in Manufacturing UK Initiative has opened an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion survey. The survey aims to improve our understanding of the landscape of initiatives promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion (ED&I) in manufacturing and to assess the extent to which increasing diversity in manufacturing could contribute to address skills shortages. The survey is now open online and should take between 15 and 20 minutes to complete. The deadline for completing the survey is 10 July 2024.

Women in Manufacturing Annual Conference

The ED&I survey will be presented at the Women in Manufacturing Annual Conference on 19^th September 2024 at the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Coventry. You can register for the event here.

Employment and Skills Forum meeting, 8^th July 14:00-16:00

Following the General Election on 4^th July, FDF’s Employment and Skills Forum will be meeting to discuss the implications of the new government and agree potential areas of focus moving forward, including the Apprenticeship Levy, wider skills policy reform and employment rights.

Additionally, the Forum will hear from Fiona Miller, IGD, who is leading the Food and Drink Sector Council sector attractiveness national campaign. This will be an opportunity for members to learn about the communications campaign and toolkit to attract more people into our industry and to understand how they can get involved in the nationwide initiative. 

You can view the Agenda here.

All full FDF members are welcome to attend, and can register here. Please contact Iliana if you have any issues registering.  If you would like more information about the meeting and who can join, please contact Tanya.

National Apprenticeship Week (5-11 February)

The FDF is preparing our campaign for National Apprenticeship Week (5-11 February) and looking into potential Ministerial visits or engagement with local MPs for our members. If a ministerial / MP visit to your business is something of interest please get in touch as soon as possible. Additionally, we would love to hear about any NAW events or social media that you have planned so we can also share on our social media channels. Please get in touch with Tanya about any of the above.

Employment and Skills Forum meeting

Next week we will be sending out invitations to the next Employment and Skills Forum meeting, on Tuesday 12^th March. The agenda will include the government response to the John Shropshire Independent Review on Labour Shortages in the Food Supply Chain, the roundtable with Shadow Skills Minister Seema Malhotra, the latest updated regarding the Shortage Occupation List and recent announcements on immigration. The Chartered Institute of Management (CMI) will also be joining as guest speakers to talk about their Chartered Manager courses. More details will be circulated shortly and if you have any questions or would like to join the meeting please contact Tanya.

Advanced British Standard Consultation

Last Autumn, the Prime Minister announced plans to develop a new qualification framework, the Advanced British Standard (ABS) which will change the structure of 16-18 year old education by bringing A Levels and T Levels together. This 10 year plan to release a new qualification framework that combined academic and vocation training has been met with some resistance and it is likely to be a short-lived proposal depending upon the outcome of the general election. However, December the DfE released a consultation on the ABS which we plan to respond to. We will send out a draft response in February for member input, however if you have any thoughts you wish to share in advance please contact Tanya.

CEC Report on Employers Standards

The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) has launched a new publication ‘From Outreach to Intake – Employer Standards for Careers Education’. This report also coincides with the formal release of the CEC Employer Standards framework, a new tool that will help raise the quality of business outreach with education. Over 360 employers have already evaluated themselves against the Employer Standards, and the report is based on these initial findings.

The report highlighted three insights into education outreach:

1. High quality employer outreach works. It boosts recruitment and improves outcomes for young people.
2. Some employers and industries are benefitting more. Outgoing and connected programmes are increasing student interest in sectors with shortages.
3. The Standards are highlighting common challenges around support of the interview and application process and the engagement of parents/carers.

Higher and Degree Apprenticeships Recruitment Fair at Sheffield Hallam University

If you are considering recruiting an apprentice, join Sheffield Hallam University on Wednesday 29 November for their Higher and Degree Apprenticeship Recruitment Fair. 4:00pm - 6:30pm / Owen Building, S1 2LX.

Learn about over 30 apprenticeship programmes offered in various sectors. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet talented individuals looking to undertake a higher or degree apprenticeship and be given support from the SHU free recruitment service.

Below are some updates of activity from over the summer and a request for feedback:

Skills Levy – Request for Feedback (by 14^th September)

Preparations for the Chancellor’s next fiscal event – the Autumn Statement on 22 November – are gearing up, and we are looking for insights into how our members would spend their Apprenticeship Levy funds if reforms were made to allow for more flexible spending e.g. a Skills Challenge Fund.   We’re asking members to consider the following questions and send any thoughts to Tanya by EOD Thursday 14^th September.

• Are there particular modular or accredited training courses that you would wish to access with these funds if available? 
• Would there be specific types of roles that would benefit most from these additional flexibility (i.e. process operators, engineers)?
• How much of your levy funds do you estimate you would spend on training other than apprenticeships?

Employment and Skills Forum meeting

We will be convening the Employment and Skills Forum on Thursday 5^th October, 14:00-16:00.  The discussion will focus on the recommendations of the Independent Review into Labour Shortages developing policy positions for the upcoming FDF Manifesto.  We will share papers in advance for members to review and will ask that you share the meeting details with colleagues who may be interested in policies relating to skills (apprenticeship levy reform, T levels, recognition of prior learning and SME support) and employment (immigration reform – skilled worker visa and graduate visas, future skills, productivity).

The draft agenda and meeting details will be circulated in the coming days.  If you would like more information about who should attend please contact Tanya.

MAC Shortage Occupation List update

Last week FDF joined a call with the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to discuss the Shortage Occupation List.  The MAC’s report will be published on Tuesday 3^rd October, and the Government response isn’t expected until late Q1 2024. 

Additionally, the MAC will be publishing their Annual Report at the end of this year.  The report will be focusing on three key areas, looking at the related policies and effects of those policies on each:

• Net Migration
• International Students
• Health & Social Care

FDF Q2 State of Industry Report

Last month FDF published our Q2 State of Industry Report.  The analysis includes evidence that in the last year, from July 2022, labour shortages have cost the industry an estimated £1.4bn, due to loss of output.  It also had found that 57 per cent of food manufacturers have vacancy rates of up to 5 per cent.  You can read the full report here.

Celebrating careers in our sector

FDF posted about the career opportunities available in our sector on LinkedIn to celebrate A Level and T Level results day.  We plan to share more case studies showing the diversity of roles and career progression available in our sector over the coming weeks – if you have stories you would like us to share please contact Tanya.