This paper analyses different dimensions of skills mismatch (notably 'macro-economic skills mismatch', 'skills shortages', and 'on-the-job skills mismatch') and their empirical relationship with labour productivity. Macro-economic skills mismatch arises when the skills distribution differs between the available workers and those that get hired. Skills shortages occur when employers encounter difficulties to fill their vacancies. On-the-job skills mismatch (overqualification or underqualification) refers to a discrepancy between the qualification level of a jobholder and the requirements for that particular job., Our data suggest that certain types of skills mismatch are indeed on the rise in the EU, notably skills shortages and overqualification. Other types are on a long-term declining trend (e.g. underqualification) or follow more complex patterns over time (e.g. macro-economic skills mismatch). There are also significant differences across EU Member States in the levels of these indicators. We further suggest that theoretical predictions on the relationship between skills mismatch and productivity depend on the dimension of skills mismatch considered. Our empirical analysis suggests a negative relationship between macro-economic skill mismatch and labour productivity and - as a sign of a buoyant economy - a positive relationship between skills shortages and labour productivity. With regard to on-the-job skills mismatch, our data confirm earlier findings from the economic literature: when comparing a mismatched with a well-matched worker within the same occupation, overqualification raises and underqualification reduces productivity. When comparing a mismatched with a well-matched worker within the same qualification level, overqualification reduces and underqualification increases productivity., Our results imply a positive link between skills supply and productivity. However, to realise the full potential of higher skills, skills should be labour market relevant and skilled workers need to be matched with jobs that use these skills. Therefore, upskilling policies should ideally be accompanied by policies that assure quality and labour market relevance of acquired skills, policies that foster a general upgrading of jobs such as business regulations allowing for firm entry, growth, sectoral reallocation, and policies supporting labour mobility and innovation.

The Queensland Government released this discussion paper for public consultation. The discussion paper invited feedback from stakeholders to inform a new Queensland VET strategy. Stakeholder views were sought on key questions related to three themes: (1) meeting the need for skills through industry advice and market settings; (2) the role of providers in delivering VET services; and (3) encouraging all Queenslanders to participate in VET. Feedback from stakeholders will contribute to the development of a VET Strategy to build a Queensland VET sector that is flexible and responsive and provides pathways to job outcomes for students as well as delivering the skills employers need now and into the future., Public consultation and submissions in response to the discussion paper closed in October 2018. A total of 45 responses were received via the Get involved online survey and 43 written submissions were received from a range of stakeholders. There were 158 attendees at the seven regional consultation forums held at the following locations: Central Queensland, North Queensland, Brisbane Metropolitan, Darling Downs South West, North Coast, South East Queensland, and Far North Queensland.

The size of our future prosperity will be determined partly by our ability to innovate and harness new technologies. This will require a skilled workforce whose skills can match, or are better than, our global competitors. So, what are the skills needed for a more interconnected, global world? The 'No Frills' 2018 discussion paper explores this question and aims to encourage conversation and discussion on this topic.

Automation and artificial intelligence (AI) are changing the nature of work. In this discussion paper, part of our ongoing research on the impact of technology on the economy, business, and society, we present new findings on the coming shifts in demand for workforce skills and how work is organized within companies, as people increasingly interact with machines in the workplace. We quantify time spent on 25 core workplace skills today and in the future for the United States and five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK), with a particular focus on five sectors: banking and insurance, energy and mining, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail. The main themes of the discussion are: How will demand for workforce skills change with automation?; Shifting skill requirements in five sectors; How will organizations adapt?; Building the workforce of the future.

Labour markets are currently in a phase of cyclical recovery and undergoing structural transformation due to globalisation, demographic trends, advancing digital technologies and automation and changes in labour market institutions. Against this background, businesses increasingly report that the limited availability of skills poses an impediment to corporate investment. Genuine skill constraints can negatively affect labour productivity and hamper the ability to innovate and adopt technological developments. For individual Europeans, not having 'the right skills' limits employability prospects and access to quality jobs. For Europe at large, persistent skill gaps and mismatches come at economic and social costs. This paper reviews the recent economic literature on skill mismatch and skill shortages with a focus on Europe.

This study builds on Autor and Dorn's (2013) classification of automatable work at the three-digit occupation code level to identify additional jobs that will be automatable in the next decade by drawing on patent data. Based on this new classification the study provides estimates of the share of jobs that we expect to be automatable in the EU and across 25 individual countries. The study highlights that aspects of 47% of jobs will be automatable over the next decade, with 35% of all jobs being fully automatable. It also provides some evidence that 'thinking' and 'people' skills will become increasingly important for the fourth industrial revolution. The study puts emphasis on the fact that these estimates are based on static models. Assuming that some of the rents from labor technology will filter back into the economy it is expected that other occupations will expand in number as people consume more goods and services.

We study the effect of minimum wage increases on employment in automatable jobs - jobs in which employers may find it easier to substitute machines for people - focusing on low-skilled workers for whom such substitution may be spurred by minimum wage increases. Based on [Current Population Survey CPS data from 1980-2015, we find that increasing the minimum wage decreases significantly the share of automatable employment held by low-skilled workers, and increases the likelihood that low-skilled workers in automatable jobs become nonemployed or employed in worse jobs. The average effects mask significant heterogeneity by industry and demographic group, including substantive adverse effects for older, low-skilled workers in manufacturing. We also find some evidence that the same changes improve job opportunities for higher-skilled workers. The findings imply that groups often ignored in the minimum wage literature are in fact quite vulnerable to employment changes and job loss because of automation following a minimum wage increase.

This study follows the Lordan and Neumark (2018) analysis for the US, and examines whether minimum wage increases affect employment opportunities in automatable jobs in the UK for low-skilled low-wage workers. Overall, I find that increasing the minimum wage decreases the share of automatable employment held by low-skilled low-wage workers, and increases the likelihood that workers in automatable jobs become disemployed. On aggregate the effect size is modest, but I also provide evidence that these effects are larger in more recent years. The study also highlights significant heterogeneity by industry and demographic group, including more substantive adverse effects for older low-skilled workers in manufacturing, as well as effects at the intensive margin.

In this paper, we study whether Swiss employers substitute between training apprentices and hiring cross-border workers. Because both training apprentices and hiring skilled workers are costly for firms, we hypothesize that (easier) access to cross-border workers will lead some employers to substitute away from training their own workers. We account for potential endogeneity issues by instrumenting a firm’s share of cross-border workers using a firm’s distance to the national border and therefore its possibility to fall back on cross-border workers to satisfy its labor demand. We find that both OLS and 2SLS estimates are negative across a wide range of alternative specifications, suggesting that firms substitute between training and hiring workers when the supply of skilled workers is higher. Our preferred 2SLS estimate implies that the increase in firms’ share of crossborder workers within our observation period, from 1995 to 2008, led to about 3,500 fewer apprenticeship positions (equal to about 2% of the total number of apprentice positions).