HR priorities in frontline industries

Frontline industries, such as hospitality, transportation, cleaning, and healthcare, are the backbone of our busy, high-speed lifestyles. However, today, they face significant challenges, including high employee turnover rates and severe skills shortages. As these industries grapple with these issues, HR professionals are under immense pressure to find solutions. 

We’re here to explore critical HR priorities, current vacancy and turnover rates, and the ongoing battle for talent in frontline sectors. At Lingio, we’re frontline training experts in the EdTech industry, and we’ll share valuable insights and data from a recent research study we conducted, titled “State of Frontline Worker Training.”

To gather these insights, we used a comprehensive research approach, which included: 

• Surveys: We surveyed 50 HR and L&D professionals from the US and UK, concentrating on frontline industries to capture their views on current training practices and future plans. 
• User research: We conducted in-depth interviews with 10 HR, L&D, and business managers in frontline industries to understand their training experiences and needs.
• Webinar polls: During a webinar, we polled international participants to collect real-time data and opinions on frontline worker training. 
• Desktop research: We reviewed reports and publications from the British Embassy to gain a broader understanding of global training trends. 
• Insights from industry professionals and experts: Our sales and marketing representatives gathered valuable feedback and insights through phone and in-person conversations, highlighting common training concerns and needs expressed by industry professionals.

Keep reading to delve deeper into our findings and recommendations.

Understanding the crisis: Vacancy and turnover rates

The current talent crisis in frontline industries is a multifaceted challenge exacerbated by several factors, including demographic shifts, economic pressures, a lack of staff engagement and satisfaction, and the evolving nature of work. 

• The social care vacancy rate is 28.3%
• The bus driver transportation vacancy rate is 10% 
• The hospitality vacancy rate is 8% 

The current vacancy rate is 4.9% in the USA, 3.4% in the UK, and 2.5% across the Euro area, all stark contrasts. 

Vacancy rates highlight the shortages of workers needed to meet the operational demands of these sectors. For example, vacancy rates in the social care sector reflect an urgent need for skilled caregivers in an ageing population. The lack of bus drivers in the transportation sector, critical for daily commuting and logistics, disrupts services and causes delays. High vacancy rates in hospitality, a sector known for its dynamic and customer-centric environment, impact service quality and customer satisfaction. 

Turnover rates worsen these issues and are equally concerning, exacerbating the skills shortage. 

• The hospitality staff turnover rate is 65%
• The retail staff turnover rate is 50%
• The social care turnover rate is 28.3%

High turnover rates indicate a lack of job satisfaction, inadequate career growth opportunities, and challenging working conditions. In hospitality, the turnover rates suggest frequent staff changes, leading to increased recruitment costs and inconsistent service. The retail turnover rates complicate efforts to maintain experienced sales staff. Social care turnover rates lead to disruptions in patient care continuity. 

These high vacancy and turnover rates create a volatile employment landscape, making it difficult for organisations to build and retain a skilled, stable workforce. Addressing these challenges requires strategic HR interventions focused on improving job satisfaction, career development, and working conditions.

HR's top priorities: Retention, leadership, and engagement

To combat the challenges of the talent crisis, our research found that frontline organisations are focusing on three primary HR priorities:

• 71% of organisations want to improve employee retention

With organisations prioritising retention, it's clear that maintaining a steady workforce is crucial. This involves offering career development opportunities and cultivating a positive work environment to keep employees happy and committed in their roles.

• 64% of organisations want to improve leadership development

Effective leadership is vital for employee support and motivation. Today organisations want to invest in leadership training to improve managers' abilities to lead their teams well.

• 57% of organisations want to boost employee engagement

Engagement directly impacts productivity and customer satisfaction. With organisations focusing on this area or aiming to, the goal is to create a motivated and efficient workforce.

Continue to part 2 for employee training statistics in frontline industries

Addressing the challenges faced by frontline industries requires innovative and effective training solutions. Lingio's training platform achieves 12x higher course completion rates compared to traditional training providers through gamified learning, making training engaging and enjoyable, tackling low engagement and high turnover rates. With mobile-based, on-demand courses, frontline workers can learn anytime and anywhere. Plus, Lingio's courses are fully customisable to align with unique company objectives. By investing in Lingio’s training solutions, frontline organisations can improve employee retention, enhance skills, and maintain compliance, positioning themselves for long-term success. 

For a comprehensive understanding of the latest trends, challenges, and opportunities in frontline worker training, download our full report, "State of frontline worker training," and empower your organisation with the insights needed to navigate the talent crisis effectively.

For more insights and statistics from our research, check out “Lingio research findings: Employee training statistics in frontline industries (part 2)”, where we’ll cover top pain points, training needs and priorities, KPIs at risk without effective training, and more.

Sources:

1. State of the Frontline Training Report 2024. (2024) Lingio
2. Foster, D. (2024) Adult social care workforce in England, UK Parliament, House of Commons Library
3. Unia, E., Fagg, J. and Fillis, V. (2022) 'Bus driver shortage: Almost 1 in 10 positions vacant', BBC News
4. Baldwin, C. (2024) 'Hospitality job vacancies fall but remain above pre-pandemic levels', The Caterer
5. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (2024) Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary
6. Skills for Care (2023) The state of the adult social care sector and workforce in England
7. Eurostat (2024) Euro area job vacancy rate at 2.7%
8. Dogru, T., McGinley, S., Sharma, A., Isık, C. and Hanks, L. (2023) 'Employee turnover dynamics in the hospitality industry vs. the overall economy', Tourism Management, 99, 104783
9. International Longevity Centre UK (2024) 'Retailers mustn’t forget their staff are their superpower'
10. Mallorie, S. (2024) The adult social care workforce in a nutshell, The King's Fund