Nhf warns of recruitment crisis

A recent survey by the National Hairdressers' Federation  reveals that 82% of hairdressing, barbering and beauty employers say that recruiting qualified and experienced staff is 'very difficult' or 'difficult. And when it comes to recruiting apprentices, one third said they pay their apprentices more than the National Minimum Wage but 72% says it's 'very difficult' or 'difficult' in their area. The NHF also highlighted recent research from the Local Data Company which shows that barbers, beauty salons, nail bars and hair and beauty salons are all in the top 10 of new businesses opening. Yet, despite the difficulties in recruitment, employers responding to the NHF survey slated college-based training courses because they don't equip college leavers with the technical and social skills employers need. For this reason, 97% of employers preferred apprenticeships. In 2016, the Low Pay Commission identified hairdressing as an industry with the highest proportion of low-pad jobs. Employers taking part in the survey acknowledged that hairdressing, barbering and beauty are often seen as dead-end career choices.

Chief executive of the NHF, Hilary Hall, added: ‘Wages are already increasing rapidly due to the National Living Wage, but employers may have no option but to pay more if they want to attract the right people into their business and keep them there.   Increasing competition from other employers, coupled with a shortage of people looking for work, is creating a recruitment crisis across the UK for our industry.’