Published: 27 Sep 2023
One of the biggest challenges facing the surveying profession at the moment is a skills shortage. It’s proving difficult to find the right candidates to fill the right roles. TSA’s own Quarterly Industry Snapshot Survey for July 2023 showed a dramatic reduction of 30% of those companies reporting they were working at full capacity in the summer months. The shortage of skilled staff is regularly reported as being in the top two of the biggest challenges for survey businesses across the UK..
Recruiting
It is difficult to recruit within the surveying sector and it is important to implement targeted recruitment. However, it is important that under-represented groups are encouraged to join the profession, and this should start in educational settings like school or college. Young people need to understand the real world application of maths through surveying. There is a role for everyone out there somewhere and it’s important to start at a young age encouraging growth within the profession. Skills needed for surveying can include engineering, maths, geography and technology knowledge. It’s good to be meticulous and to have an eye for attention to detail too.
Embracing equality, diversity and inclusion
The surveying profession is actively seeking to attract and retain talent from diverse backgrounds. Some help to the skills gap problem within the surveying sector would be to really embrace equality, diversity, and inclusion. Diversity covers a range of characteristics, including race, ethnicity, age and disability. Addressing the current issues within the profession and any unconscious bias should help bridge the skills gap shortage.
Unconscious bias against women
Inclusion is about creating a workspace where everyone feels welcome and appreciated. According to an article published by Go Construct, women make up around14% of the overall construction workforce in the construction industry and TSA members reported that 19% of their workforce was female. Unconscious bias against women is unfortunately still common. Some may feel that women are not able to use the equipment, or may be more susceptible to injury. The issue of the gender pay gap is still current, with some women still losing out on promotion opportunities. The recruitment process needs to become more transparent and fairer, focusing on skills with an awareness of any unconscious biases.
If you are a TSA Member looking to recruit and would like to place a job advert, free of charge, please email all the details to admin@tsa-uk.org.uk.
