ATHENS – Around 8 in 10 employers in Greece (77 pct) face difficulties in covering job positions, ManpowerGroup said in its annual global Talent Shortage survey for 2019 released on Wednesday.

This is an 11-year high for Greece and up 16 points compared with 2018, ManpowerGroup said. On a global scale, 54 pct of employers had difficulty recruiting workers with the necessary skills, the highest rate since 2007, and a 9.0 points increase from 2018. Japan topped the list with an 88 pct rate, followed by Romania with 86 pct, Taiwan with 77 pct and Greece with 77 pct (up four places compared with 2018). Ireland (27 pct), the UK (23 pct) and China (16 pct) recorded the lowest problems.

Among the top 10 job positions with the biggest recruiting difficulties in Greece are technicians, engineers, professional salesmen/marketing and construction workers.

Attracting and retaining skilled workers has rarely been more challenging, as reported by 54 pct of companies globally – the highest in over a decade. Now in its 13th year, ManpowerGroup’s Talent Shortage survey is the largest of its kind. New research reveals what attracts and retains workers and how that varies by age, gender and geography. To find, build and sustain the best talent while others are trying to do the same, companies need to know what workers want. They need to shift their workforce demands closer to match the needs and desires of in-demand talent and expand the pool from which they source that talent.

The top 10 most in-demand roles in 2019 are trending year over year: 80 pct of them were also in short supply in 2018. More pay, flexibility and challenging work are non-negotiable to all, but there are additional levers employers pull to attract and retain in-demand and diverse talent. The survey was conducted on a sample of 24,419 employers from 44 countries in the fourth quarter of 2019.