A shortfall in the number of workers with the skills needed to fill the jobs currently available. A skills shortage may be caused by a lack of education and vocational training, or by wider social and economic factors such as new technological developments. A skills shortage may affect a region, an industry, or a whole country. Skills shortages of this type need to be addressed at national level through effective manpower planning and the development of strategies for adult education and vocational training. An organization may suffer from a skills shortage as a result of poor recruitment and employee retention policies, or through inadequate provision of training and employee development opportunities.
