We cannot afford to ignore the challenge of economic inactivity - View from the Foyle
FSB NI, in partnership with Ulster University through EPIC Futures NI, a Local Policy Innovation Partnership funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), recently published our new report, “Empowering Employers – Turning Recruitment Barriers into Opportunities”.
The report examines how small businesses can help people who are economically inactive enter or return to employment. Small businesses want to play their part, but recruitment barriers remain significant.
Almost half (48%) of surveyed businesses have never recruited someone from an economically inactive group. Among them, a third were unaware of available support, 35% were unsure how to reach potential candidates, and more than half saw a mismatch between applicants’ skills and business needs.
These challenges are not insurmountable, but they require a more joined-up, practical approach. Small businesses face cost pressures, labour shortages and recruitment difficulties, often without dedicated HR resources to navigate complex schemes. Meanwhile, childcare, transport and health issues can prevent people taking up and sustaining work.
Our report identifies a number of practical steps that could make a real difference. We are calling for a single ‘one-stop shop’ for employers to access relevant schemes, programmes and guidance; a coordinated cross-departmental approach to economic inactivity; and the integration of HR support, training and advisory services into employment programmes.
Employers also identified what would encourage them to recruit: 65% cited financial incentives, 44% training support for new recruits, and 29% HR support during recruitment and workplace integration.
I welcome Communities Minister Gordon Lyons’ recognition that economic inactivity is one of Northern Ireland’s biggest challenges, and his commitment to helping more people find and sustain employment. His comments reflect our shared ambition: more people in good work, while giving businesses the people and skills they need to grow.
The Minister’s £16 million Pathways to Work and Wellbeing Transformation Project provides an important opportunity to put these recommendations into action.
Northern Ireland’s small businesses have the willingness to help. They now need the right support, better coordination and a system that works with them rather than around them.
If we get that right, we can turn recruitment barriers into opportunities for businesses, individuals and the economy as a whole.