Secondary analysis of employer surveys: Urban and rural differences in jobs, training, and skills

Previous research has shown that employers and employees in rural areas are likely to be disadvantaged with respect to both skills needs and the opportunities for those skills needs to be addressed because of their small and sparsely distributed populations, remote location and distances travelled over a poorer transport infrastructure. This paper uses the UK Commission’s Employer Skills Survey 2011 and Employer Perspectives Survey 2012 to explore differences and commonalities in vacancies, skills deficiencies and approaches to training and staff development.