Skilling, upskilling and reskilling of employees, apprentices and interns during the COVID-19 pandemic: findings from a global survey of enterprises

The [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 pandemic has seriously disrupted the skilling, upskilling and reskilling of employees, apprentices and interns in all types of enterprises and organizations around the world. To assess the impact of the pandemic, ten development partners together undertook a global online survey of enterprises from 27 April to 5 June 2020. The survey received 901 responses from 114 countries. Given the widespread suspension of operations and the consequent interruption of training and development activities, the survey findings paint a gloomy picture of stagnation...  [+] Show more

The [Coronavirus Disease 2019] COVID-19 pandemic has seriously disrupted the skilling, upskilling and reskilling of employees, apprentices and interns in all types of enterprises and organizations around the world. To assess the impact of the pandemic, ten development partners together undertook a global online survey of enterprises from 27 April to 5 June 2020. The survey received 901 responses from 114 countries. Given the widespread suspension of operations and the consequent interruption of training and development activities, the survey findings paint a gloomy picture of stagnation of skills development activities. Yet at the same time, enterprises and organizations around the world have demonstrated their ability to improvise and innovate, and the many good practices and innovative solutions undertaken by them to mitigate the impact of the pandemic have been captured in this report. Based on the lessons learned from the survey findings, this report proposes a range of policy recommendations to address the immediate impact of the pandemic, to ensure rapid recovery after the crisis, and to build skills development systems capable of adapting to labour market transformations in the long-run.

Excerpts from publication.