It has been revealed that many employers remain unaware of government incentives that could allow them to find new members of staff for reduced costs. The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) said that 78% of bosses did not know of, or would not use, the Youth Contract scheme, despite the incentive offering £2,275 for those hiring youngsters.
Recruitment agencies across the country can find it hard in recessions to make placements, with many companies wanting to decrease staffing costs; however, making employers more aware of the schemes could help businesses, recruiters, and those who are out of work. In the REC poll it was found that 31% of people did not know that the scheme existed, and 36% knew about the incentive but had not acted on it. Only 22% of those questioned said that they had take advantage of the funding offer to employ a youngster and bolster their staffing levels.
Kevin Green, chief executive of the REC, said: “It’s clear that the government’s good intentions on youth employment are not hitting the mark if four out of five employers are not taking up the opportunity of a financial incentive to take on a young worker. It’s especially hard for young people because in a challenging economic climate employers tend to hire on the basis of experience rather than potential.” He added that it was vital for employers to be made aware of the Youth Contract scheme, offering more employment options and benefiting their company with fresh workers at the same time.
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