Scots firms under more pressure than UK counterparts, stats suggest
Pressure on Scottish firms as a result of worker shortages is more severe than for business across much of the rest of the UK, statistics suggest.
One in five companies in Scotland said employees were working increased hours, while 10.7 per cent were “unable to meet demands” – the highest in Britain – due to a lack of staff.
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Hide AdThe figures were published by the Office for National Statistics following a survey at the end of November with more than 10,000 firms, 718 of which were headquartered in Scotland.


The study asked what challenges businesses had experienced as a result of worker shortages.
The 10.7 per cent north of the border who said demands couldn’t be met was the most in the UK, and above the national average of 8.7 per cent.
And the 20 per cent who said staff had to up their hours was also higher than the national average of 17.6 per cent, with only Northern Irish companies asking their workers to do more.
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Hide AdScotland in Union, the pro-UK campaign group, claimed the findings showed SNP ministers had failed businesses and workers over 17 years in charge of the country’s economy.
Alastair Cameron, chair of Scotland in Union, said: “The SNP has been in running Scotland for 17 years – so it must take responsibility for this challenging situation.
“Some workers don’t mind putting in overtime, but for one in five firms to be depending on it just to keep the wheels turning is far from ideal.
“What’s worse is that one in 10 cannot meet the demands, a situation that is unsustainable for any business of any size. And what is particularly alarming is that these particular challenges are worse for Scottish businesses than others across the UK. That shows that responsibility lies squarely with the Scottish Government.
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Hide Ad“The Scottish Government must do more to create a positive environment for businesses; be more imaginative when it comes to supporting them financially; and work towards making Scotland the best – not the most difficult - place to do business in the UK.”
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Brexit and UK immigration rules make it harder for businesses to recruit staff from overseas. The Scottish Government has launched its migration service to help overcome some of these hurdles and stands ready to support the UK Government to design an immigration system that addresses the requirements of Scotland’s economy and communities.
“The Scottish Government is working with business to grow the economy and address labour and skill shortages, promoting fair work to make it easier for people to enter and remain in the workforce and ensuring our education and skills system are responsive to national needs.
“Since 2007, accounting for population growth, GDP per person in Scotland has grown by 10.5 per cent compared to 6.3 per cent across the UK as a whole. Over the same period productivity has grown at an average of 1.1 per cent a year compared to 0.4 per cent in the UK.”
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