Maritime Environmental Scan-Final Report Maritime Environmental Scan-Final Report | Page 53

• Companies are increasingly unsatisfied with the level of technical skills and specialized knowledge of the students graduating from IHLs. Low efficiency and effectiveness in provision of training • 5. Improve quality Nearly half (44%) of the respondents do not provide training and efficiency of for their employees. As for those who do, the majority (63%) training provision provide training to less than 10 employees only. • There is a high dependence on internal training (63%), which is almost equal to the utilization of external training (68%). The time-consuming and extensive nature of internal training could be negatively affecting a company’s productivity. As companies’ own employees are spending more time training new hires, there is an opportunity cost for these capable employees to contribute to more value-added work (e.g. research activities, automation) that could facilitate the company to move up the value chain. • As the sector is labour-intensive, overreliance on internal training may also result in unnecessary costs, which could be financially detrimental to companies that are struggling to stay afloat in a poorly performing market. • In addition, utilization of HRDF levy as a source of funding for training expenses is low (30%), with a much lower utilization of HRDF pool fund. Environmental Scan – Maritime (Shipbuilding and Ship Repair -SBSR) Sector 49