According to 2008 Talent Shortage Survey by global human resource firm - Manpower, about 31 per cent of employers worldwide are having difficulty filling positions due to lack of suitable talent. In the last survey, the proportion was 41 per cent.
However, the survey revealed that the talent shortage appears to be least problematic in India with just 12 per cent employers facing difficulties, along with those in the United Kingdom (12 per cent).
In China, about 15 per cent employers face problems in getting the right kind of people, while in Ireland and the Netherlands it is 14 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively.
Meanwhile, companies finding it most difficult to fill vacancies with suitable talent are in Romania (73 per cent), Japan (63 per cent), Hong Kong (61 per cent), Singapore (57 per cent), Australia (52 per cent) and Taiwan (51 per cent), the survey said.
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But the picture is not so rosy for India when compared to last year's survey. The percentage of employers in India facing talent shortage has increased to 12 per cent in the 2008 survey as compared to 9 per cent in the previous year.
The UK, which has the same percentage of employers facing difficulties as India, on the other hand has witnessed a 22 percentage points fall in the regard over the previous year.
In the Asia Pacific region, the problem has reduced by about two percentage points at 31 per cent this year as against 33 per cent in the 2007 survey.
The latest survey also found that the top 10 jobs for which employers across 32 countries and territories are having difficulty include skilled manual trades, sales representatives, technicians (primarily production/operations) and engineers.
Among other jobs are management/executives, labourers, secretaries, administrative assistants and office support staff, drivers, accounting and IT staff.
Skilled manual trades refers to a broad range of job titles that require workers to possess specialised skills traditionally developed over a period of time as an apprentice, for example electricians, bricklayers, carpenters, cabinetmakers, masons and plumbers.
In India, employers are facing talent crunch primarily in hiring IT staff, engineers, management executives, accounting, marketing staff and technicians among others.