October 2024 | Ai Group’s Centre for Education and Training surveys a cross section of Australian businesses every two years to learn more about skills and workforce challenges across the economy. The impacts of low levels of literacy and numeracy uncovered in this survey include time wasted, poor completion of work documents and reports, teamwork and communications problems, and staff lacking confidence and willingness to take on new work.
This future-facing survey asks companies about the external and internal factors driving their skills and workforce needs now and into the future. It also asks where the skills challenges or shortages are, and the steps businesses plan to take to develop or acquire the skills and capabilities they consider they need to succeed.
This year’s survey finds that low levels of literacy and numeracy continue to have an impact on both employees and employers in 2024, with 88% of companies affected by low levels of literacy and numeracy.
Low levels of literacy and numeracy are having a more pronounced effect on productivity in the workplace than reported in the Centre’s survey in 2022.
The survey also finds that 42% of companies require greater basic digital skills capabilities over the coming 12 months as digitally enhanced technology and communications become increasingly integrated into job tasks and functions across all occupations. The Listening to Australian businesses on workforce and skills 2024 survey had responses from 251 individual businesses, collectively employing a total of 291,232 FTE employees.
As the world of work changes, it is important that barriers do not remain that inhibit the entry, participation and retention of individuals into work, who are impacted by low levels of language, literacy, numeracy, and digital literacy (LLND). Similarly, low levels of LLND should be removed as a barrier to lifelong learning and upskilling or retraining opportunities.
Addressing low levels of LLND have both micro- and macro-economic benefits, which is why governments, education and training providers, industry, and individuals must work in concert to ensure that the societal and productivity impacts are mitigated or removed.
