- 20% of manufacturing companies have lost out on business because staff can’t speak a foreign language
- 21% of employers in the manufacturing sector would be willing to pay staff more if they had language skills
- 16% of manufacturing companies would benefit from more foreign language speakers
One in five companies in the manufacturing sector (20%) has lost out on business because their staff cannot speak a foreign language, according to research released recently by the Teach Yourself Business Languages Series.
The independent research conducted by Gfk NOP reveals that 16% of companies in the manufacturing sector feel that they would benefit from a foreign language speaker in their organisation and 23% would actively hire a candidate who could speak a second language over one who couldn’t.
The survey of over 500 UK companies also found that over a fifth (21%) of Manufacturing companies would consider offering employees who speak a foreign language extra incentives, including a higher salary. This is compared to only 6% of construction companies and 7% of companies in the Retail sector.
Sarah Carroll, author of the Teach Yourself Business Languages Series, says: “Globalisation has prompted the demand for foreign language speakers in the UK. As Manufacturing companies begin to operate more within the international community, they must ensure they hire staff with good language skills. It’s encouraging that some Manufacturing companies are beginning to recognise this demand and that they are prepared to offer foreign language speakers a premium salary.
“China is one of the fastest growing global markets and the demand for UK Mandarin Chinese speakers is increasing. Mandarin Chinese is quickly becoming one of the most useful languages to know in business and Spanish may well end up rivaling English as a global business language in the Americas by 2050. Manufacturing businesses need to be aware of this and invest in foreign language speakers so they are able to compete in the global market.”
