Addressing the Impacts of Labour Shortages on Scotland’s Economy (Amendment 2)
S6M-02740.2: As an amendment to motion S6M-02740 in the name of Kate Forbes (Addressing the Impacts of Labour Shortages on Scotland’s Economy), leave out from “believes” to “fair work” and insert “notes the finding from the Scottish Fiscal Commission that Scotland’s economy is lagging behind the rest of the UK, partly due to factors that predate the COVID-19 pandemic, such as declining labour market participation, weak investment in productivity and insufficient flexibility in skills development; considers that building a more sustainable and resilient economy will require an industrial strategy that addresses regional inequalities, low pay and poor conditions, and the skills gaps across Scotland; believes that the Scottish Government and its agencies must do more work with employers, business organisations, trade unions, colleges and universities to address recruitment and retention, promote fair work and offer more flexibility in reskilling opportunities for workers”.

Original motion(S6M-02740):
That the Parliament recognises the resilience and innovation that employers and workers across many sectors of the economy have demonstrated throughout the last year in response to the continuation of workforce challenges associated with the pandemic, combined with reduced workforce availability as a result of the UK’s exit from the EU; believes that the Scottish Government and its agencies are committed to working with employers, business organisations and trade unions, to resolve and understand labour shortages, skills gaps and future requirements, and address recruitment and retention challenges through interventions and institutions designed to help more people into work, implementing a range of upskilling and retraining opportunities, and promoting the benefits of fair work, and calls on the UK Government to make immediate changes to its economically damaging migration policies in order to protect the provision of services and the delivery of goods through Scotland’s supply chains.