Construction bosses are being urged to maintain a commitment to staff training to preserve the industry’s workforce during recession, as new figures are published today from the Construction Skills Network (CSN) report.

The annual CSN report, produced by ConstructionSkills, the Sector Skills Council for the construction industry, reveals two distinct periods for the industry: one of recession (through 2009 and into 2011) and one of gradual recovery (from 2011 to 2013).

The year on year data indicates there will be a 3% contraction in 2009, followed by nil growth in output nationally in 2010, followed by a gradual return to low-level growth of 1% in 2011, 2% in 2012 and 3% in 2013. These figures result in an average annual output growth over the next five years of 0.5%.

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This is reflected in the growth forecast for Scotland which will see a dip of 1.4% over the next two years. The longer term picture is encouraging however, with growth predicted to be above the UK average in 2011, prompting businesses to ensure that workers possess the requisite skills for when demand picks up.

The report indicates that the annual construction output is forecast at 0.6% over the next five years, maintaining a demand for construction workers. Of the 3,960 new recruits required to join the industry each year during this period, there will be a specific demand for wood trade and interior fit out specialists such as carpenters and joiners, as well as plant operatives and mechanics.

This projected growth is being driven by the Scottish Government's 10 year transport investment programme which mirrors the trend being seen across the UK.

Figures for Scotland also indicate that there will be an annual drop in commercial property activity of around 0.6%.

Graeme Ogilvy, ConstructionSkills Director for Scotland said 2009 will be an especially challenging year for the construction industry, and some sectors such as private housing and commercial property will be impacted further by the adverse economic climate. In response, ConstructionSkills is working on a number of measures to support affected employers.

"A recession is not a time to decrease training levels, and if that happens, the long term skills deficit will be severe. These are issues we still face from the recession in the 1990s."

(GK/JM)