In recent months, the water industry has grabbed the headlines for many reasons, but very little has been said about the major problem on the horizon. In this article, Adam Cave, Managing Director and Founder of Water by Murray, part of Murray McIntosh, examines the elephant in the room – that many employers feel they will struggle to resource the major programme of works being delivered from 2025-2030 as part of AMP8.
Water by Murray’s recent Water Industry Labour Report revealed that, in spite of the pollution, hygiene and infrastructure issues facing it, for specialist water engineers, the biggest issue of them all is related to skills & recruitment. Over a quarter of respondents (26%) listed this as the single largest problem facing water, and if anyone knows the extent of the resourcing issues it will be engineers, who see these problems for themselves at ground level.
The data is also in line with many organisation’s analyses of the market. Several major firms believe there simply aren’t enough engineers in the market to deliver the scheduled programme of works. This is ultimately the real issue facing the sector and everyone should be questioning how it can be solved. Without the right engineers, there’s a good chance that many of the critical projects, if they even get off the ground, could come grinding to a halt.
As well as a lack of available talent, compounding the issue is the upcoming retirement cliff. According to external research, around one-fifth of the existing workforce is set to retire in the next decade. And, on top of that, Water by Murray’s research found that seven in ten engineers are considering taking on roles in other, often less-scrutinised fields.
In order to meet the potentially strenuous resourcing demands of AMP8, firms need to think strategically. With a shortage of specialist permanent engineers in water, employers consider recruiting from other industries. The sector as a whole has been pillaged for talent for too long, and now firms need to do the same and hire laterally. This approach brings with it additional time and costs required to train specialists, so to resource projects before the kick off next year, employers need to start now.
In the shorter term, more organisations should look to leverage the power of the contingent workforce. All firms will be competing for the same talent, so separating yourself from your rivals and standing out will be key to hiring effectively. Water by Murray looked in detail at some of the main engineer motivators in the Water Industry Labour Report, and found that offering flexibility, and tailoring approaches to individuals, can make a big difference.
Many firms fret over the costs of sourcing contingent engineers, and while rates may be higher, sourcing talent in this way provides more flexibility as volumes can be tuned up or down depending on demand. There are also fears around turnover and the impact this can have on wider working cultures, but this is negating the fact that the market has changed. One organisation that Water by Murray works with found that its average length of tenure was longer for contingent workers than its supposedly permanent engineering workforce, highlighting how much the working world has changed in recent years.
While there is a major shortage of engineers, operating more strategically can help employers to meet these challenges in the short-medium term. However, while this approach may plaster over the problems of AMP8, in the longer term the industry as a whole needs to do more to attract people to work in water. That means partnering together to promote some of the opportunities available to attract new talent in, and listening to existing engineers about what really motivates them. There is a long way to go before the water sector is in a more comfortable position, but for now the focus for employers should be on delivering the major programme of works held within AMP8.
