Reflections on Sri Lanka’s first “Labor Demand Survey of 2017”
and its relation to Sri Lanka Unites.
In 2017, the Department of Census and Statistics in Sri Lanka surveyed 3500 companies across the country and its `employers to conduct the first “Labour Demands Survey” in Sri Lanka.
The objectives of the study were
1. To examine the current employment pattern and recent recruitments and difficulties faced
2. To Identify the constraints of recruiting employees in filling the vacancies
3. To quantify the labour demand of the country by estimating the vacancies at present
4. To quantify the expected recruitments in the next twelve months by major occupation category
As SLU enters the 12th year of operation we are reviewing ways in which we may have contributed to Sri Lanka's economy over time. The 2nd objective was of specific interest to SLU because of our ability to directly influence these statistics. We took a closer look at Chapter 5 of the report titled “Future Hiring and Required Skills”, specifically on the section where the skills and labour needed for the private sector, was also assessed through the survey.
The objectives of the study were
1. To examine the current employment pattern and recent recruitments and difficulties faced
2. To Identify the constraints of recruiting employees in filling the vacancies
3. To quantify the labour demand of the country by estimating the vacancies at present
4. To quantify the expected recruitments in the next twelve months by major occupation category
As SLU enters the 12th year of operation we are reviewing ways in which we may have contributed to Sri Lanka's economy over time. The 2nd objective was of specific interest to SLU because of our ability to directly influence these statistics. We took a closer look at Chapter 5 of the report titled “Future Hiring and Required Skills”, specifically on the section where the skills and labour needed for the private sector, was also assessed through the survey.
Teamwork, oral communication and taking initiative were recognized as the top 3 skills which needed the most improvement. According to the figure above, more than one-third of the firms mentioned that the ability of teamwork in is needed for the employees, who were not performing up to standard. Oral communication, taking initiative were the next highly important skills highlighted by the management of the firms which have to be improved among poorly performing employees.
SKILLS NEEDING MOST IMPROVEMENT
The relevance of the Labour Demand Survey to
Sri Lanka Unites.
Sri Lanka Unites.
Sri Lanka Unites has been training young people to be leaders in the country for over a decade. SLU is happy to note that these three skills happen to be the very core of SLU leadership training. Thousands of youth have been trained over the last 11 years.
SLU believes that young people must unite along ethnic and religious lines to bring true transformational change. However, despite the heart to create change, SLU believes young people lack the very basic skills to be the change makers they long to be.
Therefore, with nation-building as the ultimate focus of bringing young people together, “leadership training”, which includes the very skills in demand, is essential. Leadership training also happens to be a core pillar of the organization and it is a mandatory part of training for each and every student/volunteer who walks through the doors of SLU.
The following is a quick summary of how it is done. Activities are conducted at leadership training sessions by SLU staff and senior volunteers, who act as facilitators. These facilitators have all received ample training. Once an activity is conducted, the facilitators de-brief the trainee on the intentions of the activity.
Teamwork
A number of activities are conducted to teach the following aspects of teamwork
Defining a team
Working along gender/ethnic lines/religious lines
Understanding the different strengths of each team member
Ability to work towards a common goal
Seeing the possibilities which could be achieved only by working together
Importance of team discussions vs only taking orders
Respecting opinions of all
Oral communication
The following dynamics of Oral Communication (and communication at large) are taught through activities
The importance of each individual voice
Importance of seeing the other person’s side of the story
Active listening “seek to listen then respond”
The ability to create conversations with strangers by finding common ground with strangers,
“Icebreakers” when meeting new people
The manner in which you communicate as a collective when working towards a common goal
The importance of understanding the other's language
The use of oral communication (speaking out against justice, self-expression)
Learn to speak and communicate with different parties/seniors/ people in authority
Taking initiative
Sri Lanka Unites offers school students with multiple opportunities to take their own initiatives and test the possibilities of being pro-active in the face of a problem instead of reactive.
The “Champions of Change” program partners two schools across different ethnic/religious backgrounds, and encourages them to conduct a social action project together. This is a learning curve for many students who have never held a leadership role where all decisions related to the project are made by them. SLU facilitates the process, but we watch as they learn from their mistakes!
They learn how to;
Analyze pro’s and con’s before taking independent decisions
Have confidence in their analysis
Be brave enough to put ideas and thoughts into action
We have many stories which verify that the education system does not provide adequate leadership training and so we are not surprised that the above three factors are required to the intensity reflected through the survey.
Were the results of the LDS a result of a larger issue?
The lack of priority given to harnessing soft-skills through the education system is one possible root cause of this issue.
Inability to work as a team, which in essence means to work towards a common goal.
The learning environment in most schools focuses on preparing children competitive exams, starting at from age 10 (grade 5 scholarship exams), to age 18 (university entrance).
- The notorious “Grade 5 scholarship exam” is when most children start competing fiercely with their peers to get scholarships into better schools at the tender age of 10 years.
- Students don’t see themselves as part of a collective, but as individuals who are destined to run a race by themselves. They are taught that achievement comes by surpassing others in every sphere possible; to be “the best”.
- The sense of competition consumes a student right throughout their formative years until they sit for the Advanced level exams. The final fierce competition, gets unhealthily competitive, as students fight to get access to the limited seating in a local university. Every year we have cases of suicide once A-level results are released, where students who fail to get into university see no other options left in life.
Similarly, oral communication is a skill rarely harnessed in school students.
- In most schools, the vast majority of students do not take part in extracurricular activities. The general definition of learning is to memorize school textbooks and re-write the very same text in an exam paper. While acknowledging the importance of examining the extent to which young people have grasped an understanding of the subject matter, the Sri Lankan education system is essentially built along a model which fundamentally tests the ability of a child to memorize.
- The textbooks have been designed in such a way that teachers take notes and students listen.
- Most individuals spend a lot of time either at home or classes and hence does not communicate with or know how to communicate with new people. They are shy and backwards, without an ability to create conversations. The lack of such skills would most certainly impact their quality as individuals in the labour force.
Consequently, “taking initiative” is barely a skill that is acknowledged, let alone practised.
- The syllabus is a frame into which young students are forcefully directed. There are no opportunities which allow young people to take independent decisions.
- The strict hierarchical structured of authority in schools and homes produce Sri Lankan youth who cannot take a decision let alone take initiative without “asking someone”, most often a teacher/parent.
- The conservative norms which govern Sri Lankan upbringing thus produce youth who feel disempowered in the presence of authority. Taking initiative in the workplace would make a young person feel” disobedient”, as they would have been trained to think at both home and school.
We sincerely hope the education system changes to include training on the missing skills needed in the country.
It is exhilarating to know that our work contributes to the quality of Sri Lankan Labour! We believe that through our training, we ultimately contribute to our economy.
We are motivated to do more!
Read more here: "Labour Demand Survey 2017" http://www.statistics.gov.lk/industry/Labour_Demand_Survey_2017_Report.pdf
Written by
Neluni Tilllekeratne
Co-National Director
Sri Lanka Unites
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