Scottish Job Market Prospects in 60 Seconds

The Institute for Public Policy Research is a leftwing thinktank based in London in the UK. It was founded in 1988 and is an independent registered charity. IPPR has offices in Newcastle, Manchester, and Edinburgh.  

This is what they have to say about the future of work in Scotland.

The world of work in 2030 will be very different to that in 2017. People are more likely to be working longer, and will often have multiple jobs, with multiple employers and in multiple careers. Over 2.5 million adults of working age in Scotland today (nearly 80 per cent) will still be of working age by 2030. At the same time, over 46 per cent of jobs (1.2 million) in Scotland are at high risk of automation. We will therefore need a skills system ready to work with people throughout their careers.

There have been improvements in the Scottish labour market in recent years in terms of pay and productivity, while qualification levels have been steadily improving and are higher than levels in the UK as a whole. However, Scotland continues to have lower rates of in-work progression and lower rates of productivity than the UK as a whole, and pay rates, although increasing, have reduced in real terms and are still behind rates in the UK overall.

Within the skills system, there are gaps and overlaps in provisions, with a clear gap in mid-career provision, which employers are not addressing. While we have the best record within the UK nations for employers investing in training, there is still much to be improved on, with too many employers adopting a low-skill business model.

We make a number of recommendations in this report, which include a proposal for a new Open Institute of Technology (OIT) for Scotland, to provide a flexible and transferable mid-career learning route, as well as a focus on in-work progression, productivity and pay outcomes and tests of demand from classroom to boardroom.

By making changes now, we can ensure the skills system is at the centre of supporting Scotland’s economy through the short- and long-term challenges it faces, and delivering the inclusive economic growth we wish to see.

IPPR has set up a landmark Commission to rethink economic policy for post-Brexit Britain.

The economy belongs to us all, but it is not working for everyone. Half of all households have seen no meaningful improvement in their incomes for more than a decade. Only London and the South East have seen a full recovery in economic output since the financial crisis. In a new IPPR poll only a fifth of the public said they think the way the economy works is fair.

The UK economy also suffers from significant structural weaknesses – low and declining investment, low productivity, a large balance of trade deficit and major fiscal and carbon gaps.

These problems suggest that the foundations of our economy need to be rethought. We need a new national economic vision and policy that can generate sustainable growth and broadly-shared prosperity.

The Commission on Economic Justice therefore aims to rewrite the rules for the post-Brexit economy. It brings together people from across society – from business and trade unions, civil society organisations and academia –, to examine the challenges facing the UK economy and make practical recommendations for its reform.

​The Commission is non-party-political and has been welcomed by both Government and Opposition. Commissioners come from both sides in the EU referendum campaign.

The Commission will last for two years, publishing its final report in autumn 2018.