By comparison there are 24 listed marketing qualifications, 10 printing ones, and 10 for logistics, but only five for packaging. More importantly, the number of organisations offering packaging courses leading to qualifications and of people enrolling is very small. But need we worry? The packaging industry has always got along fine without investing large amounts of time and money in training. Well, among other things, there is a direct correlation between the amount of training companies do and their profitability – a factor seen worldwide.
For example, recently the London School of Economic's Centre for the Economics of Education quoted a late 90s study which found that productivity levels were significantly higher if more training was undertaken and that low skills contribute as much as a fifth to the productivity gap between the UK and Germany. Small and medium-sized UK companies also benefited from investment in training.
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has calculated that an increase of 5% in the proportion of workers trained raises value added per worker by 4%. A US study showed companies that invested most in training had, on average, 24% higher gross profit margins and 218% higher income per employee than those investing least.
The Packaging Industry Awarding Body Company has made great strides in helping the packaging industry provide more effective training for its work force, recently gaining approval for the first of what will be a suite of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs). It is for packaging operators, the often unsung, untrained heroes of the industry, who play a vital role in ensuring good quality packs are produced on time and according to specification.
However, they are also people who have few opportunities to get their skills and competences formally recognised and to progress. The NVQ will provide them with that opportunity and could pave the way for the industry to access more government funds for training and to address its training deficit.
