Partner Article

New recruitment database for engineers

The Minister for Business has announced the launch of an online recruitment system to match employers and employees in the engineering industry in a bid to cut unemployment levels in the sector.

Talent Retention Solutions (TRS) was created by the Skills and Jobs Retention Group (SJRG) and Semta (Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies) to help defence engineers struggling to find work.

TRS is due to become fully operational by 2012, and by this time it is estimated that over 1500 employers will be signed up to the scheme, ranging from large corporations to SMEs. Names that have already joined the system include Rolls Royce, Siemens and Nissan.

Launching TRS, Minister for Business and Enterprise Mark Prisk said: “This easily accessible web based system will play a vital role in ensuring that these skills are not lost by redeploying highly skilled workers into growing sectors of advanced manufacturing such as automotive, energy, infrastructure and aerospace.”

It is hoped that in time the scheme will be extended across advanced manufacturing and engineering sectors and will be a vital tool in situations where large scale redundancies are occurring.

Allan Cook, Chairman of Semta and the SJRG, said: “The UK operates in a competitive international market and success in these markets is dependent upon us providing the best products, services and solutions for their services.

“It is imperative for our future success and economic growth that we do all we can to retain, recruit and motivate our employees within the advanced engineering and manufacturing sectors.”

The TRS has received initial funding from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills worth £450,000, but by next year the system will be fully led and funded by business.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .