The Institute of the Motor Industry is marking National Careers Week by highlighting the expanding range of career options in automotive.
It has pointed out that there are now more than 200 distinct occupations within the sector, with increasing demand for technical, digital, commercial and environmental skills.
Its own analysis published in the Green Skills Report found that tech-led and green-linked roles are expected to grow from about 14% of today’s workforce to nearly 30% by 2032.
Key areas of skills growth include data and IT (51%), remanufacturing and recycling (23%), and customer experience (23%).
New technologies
CEO Nick Connor said: “Many people still believe that a job in the motor industry usually involves a workshop; the reality is very different. The sector is increasingly green, digital and technology-led. And with such a fast pace of change as new technologies such as electric and ADAS become the norm, automotive offers career progression and reinvention for people at many stages of life.
“The employers that demonstrate the broadest scope of the skills required and the career opportunities available will be able to compete most successfully with other sectors in the talent arms-race.”
He concluded: “The range of skills required in automotive is expanding significantly. It is vital, therefore, that employers develop recruitment strategies that reflect the changing occupational mix and positively promote development pathways that offer reskilling.
“With a current vacancy rate of 16,000 the sector should be capitalising on the widest range of skills that already exist in the UK employment market.”
