Clare Companies embrace training to boost performance – Killeen

3,800 companies nationwide join training networks

Minister for Labour Affairs Tony Killeen, T.D., has highlighted the need to acknowledge the critical link between skill development and competitiveness in order to ensure our future prosperity.

Minister Killeen was speaking at the publication by Skillnets, the enterprise-led training support body, on the outcomes of the highly innovative Training Networks programme, which was launched at its national conference, Innovation and Change Through Learning Networks.

The report on the 2002-5 programme showed that 3,800 companies in sectors from plastics to software development had trained over 22,000 employees as a result of the programme.

The programme has seen an overall investment of €20 million in training with companies investing €7.5m in their human resources and Skillnets contributing an additional €13.5m.

Minister Killeen said: “Ireland’s economy continues to thrive and grow, much to the envy of our European partners. This is reflected in our employment creation figures, which last year grew at the fastest rate since 1999. These record levels of economic growth and employment generation are the product of carefully considered policies pursued over many years by this Government in co-operation with the social partners. These policies have consistently sought to stimulate and foster innovation as a means of increasing our international competitiveness.

“Education and training have been at the heart of our remarkable economic success and will continue to do as we seek to stimulate and foster innovation as a means of increasing our international competitiveness. This has led to sharp increase in the focus on public funding for training, particularly for the training of those already in employment,” Minister Killeen added.

“Since 2003 the Department’s funding for this activity has increased from €14 million to in excess of €50 million in the current year. Skillnets is a significant player in the use of these funds both through its Training Networks Programme and the new ACCEL Programme launched last year. “The new Accel programme is using an additional €16 million to support workers and brings together new partnerships between industry, social partners and education & training providers to accelerate skills development at enterprise level. I am glad to see that 55 new training projects have now been awarded funding under this initiative, ” Minister Killeen said

85% of all businesses involved in the Training Networks Programme had less than 50 employees. These SMEs are the backbone of the Irish economy and the sector traditionally who experience difficulty accessing training. Skillnets helps SMEs develop practical tools to analyse and meet training needs, quickly, locally and effectively.

The Minister of State paid particular tribute to the work being done in County Clare by Skills ACIST and by the Renewable Energy Network in the Clare/Limerick area.

For further information on Skillnets please contact:

Rachel Gaffey, Skillnets, Phone : 01 2916613, Mobile : 086 172 6224

Brendan Murphy, Financial Dynamics, Phone: 016633615, Mobile: 0872051111

Maura Howe, Financial Dynamics, Phone: 016633610, Mobile: 0876823566

Notes for Editors

Skillnets Ltd is an enterprise led support body dedicated to the facilitation of enterprise training and workplace learning. Skillnets Ltd was established in 1999 to encourage and add impetus to Irish business’s drive towards the adoption of best practice standards in human resource development. The organisation is led by employer and employee stakeholders – IBEC, CI, SFA, CIF, ICTU – in partnership with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and receives funds from the National Training Fund. Skillnets Ltd is funded by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and has a total fund of €55 million to spend on industry training initiatives between 2005 -2010. In 2006/2007 Skillnets Ltd will provide a total of €16 million in funding to 54 Skillnet training networks across the country.

Skillnets supports groups of firms to come together in Training Networks to develop flexible and relevant training programmes that specifically meet the needs of the business. The report shows that over 3,800 industry based courses have been delivered by Training Networks and 1,000 new courses were developed by the businesses themselves. Of all the courses delivered during the programme, 78% were specifically customised to meet network member company needs. This provides strong evidence of companies’ preference to design their own training solutions.

Since 1999 over 6,100 companies and over 35,000 staff have participated in Skillnets programmes. The organisation currently has a mandate and funding of €55m until 2010 and there are now 54 Networks in the 2006-2007 Training Networks Programme.

ENDS

LA 186

17^th May 2006