The new challenges caused by the economy have increased the pressure of the working environment in Colombia.

This conclusion comes from the Global Index of Skills, a study developed by Hays and Oxford University, which classifies the current labor outlook as “complex”.

The methodology of the report asses the labor pressure for every country in a scale 0 to 10 where having a score over 5.0 shows that the labor market has more pressure than what is normal, while below 5.0 shows that the market is less pressed.

According to the survey, the professional skills gap grows even in continents such as Europe, while in Latin America the drop of the oil prices has become a distortive factor as it affects most of the economies of the region and increases the countries’ unemployment rate.

The study shows that the Colombian labor market is no longer in the most critical situation in Latin America. In indicators such as labor market’s flexibility, Colombia had a score of 7 points, beating Brazil (9 points) for the first time. “However, there is still a long way to go to reduce the existing gap between the skills demanded and the training of Colombian professionals”, points out the report.

Colombia improved 0.2% its general score in comparison to 2015, the last time the study was made, in which the country had a total score of 6.1. The increase is particularly noticeable in the indicator of labor market participation, which reached 8.3 points. The elevated average of this item reflects the lack of trained professionals in the country.

“Colombia is one of the countries with greatest tension in the labor market participation. The reason is that most Colombian professionals do not fulfil the basic requirements made by companies. Therefore, enterprises occasionally look for talent abroad, particularly for leadership roles. The lack of training and education opportunities result in most Colombians accessing informal jobs that provide no possibilities of development nor stable labor contracts”, points out Axel Dono CEO of Hays Colombia.

As regards the indicator of education level, which identifies whether institutions fit the needs of companies or not, Colombia earned 6.1 points, a fact that makes it the Latin American country with greatest challenges to train professionals that have the skills the current labor market demands.

According to Dono, Colombians are graduating without the skills the labor market requires. “A clear example is the English level, which limits the development of professionals and their chances of having better jobs and wages”.

A positive aspect is that Colombia has the higher level of labor participation of the labor market that adults aged 55 to 64 years old are having. The survey also acknowledges the fact that Colombia has reduced the wages’ pressure for positions that demand specialized knowledge and skills, achieving a 3.2 score.  “Nowadays, the industries are looking for more efficiency in their processes and staff that may respond to the needs they have”, stated Dono.

Reducing the skills gap is a major challenge for the future of work in Colombia.