The average labor productivity growth rate in Iran stands at 1.3 percent, minister of labor, cooperatives and social welfare, Ali Rabiee, has announced.
In the closing ceremony of the 15th National Skills Competition, Rabiee stated that training skilled workforce “enhances productivity and creativity, and reduces costs,” ISNA reported.
The labor minister added that high-skilled workers can bring about positive changes to the national economy; nevertheless, much of the failure experienced by industrial enterprises has its roots in their lack of creativity, and inability to keep pace with market demands.
Clearly, high-skilled individuals enjoy higher job security. In order for more people to benefit from this favorable condition, Iran’s Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO) and the labor ministry have put forth a plan to sign pacts with all ministries, NGOs, and guilds, which are the main sources for creating job opportunities.
“If these agreements yield satisfactory results, we will publish the reports on our cooperation with all organizations in the coming months,” Rabiee stated. The minister expressed hope that the move will result in a network of collaboration between job creators and jobseekers.
President Hassan Rouhani has, on several occasions since last year, asserted that it is necessary for university graduates to become familiar with the job market requirements. In order to estimate the number of graduates, research projects have been carried out in several provinces. According to the official data, in some provinces, the ratio between the number of graduates and the overall demand for jobs stands at 4 percent, while the ratio for the graduates’ knowledge of the pros and cons of the job market varies between 4 and 25 percent.
Referring to these figures, Rabiee noted that this is not an ideal status for a country which aims to make serious changes to its employment strategy. He said the detailed results of the nationwide job market research will be published in the near future.
Search for Local Talents
Elsewhere, the labor minister pointed to the national high-skilled recruitment act, stating that the National Network of Elites and High-Skilled Talents will be established by the end of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2015) to cover the job market situation in several provinces. In order to improve the labor productivity growth rate and the employment network, negotiations have been started with a number of institutions that conduct professional competence assessments.
“We have also planned to provide educational courses on computer and mobile technologies across the country in line with our talent localization program,” Rabiee stated.
The minister also urged the parliament to increase its support for the promotion of hi-tech and nanotechnology, stating that “today’s job market needs to be updated with appropriate gadgets.”
Rabiee also said of a plan for broadening skills in rural and border areas. “A large number of institutions have been established in border towns and underdeveloped areas; however, these do not recruit local workforce,” the minster added. The local workforce needs to be trained in order for them to be able to grasp local job opportunities in those organizations that have been tasked with implementing major projects.
Rabiee said that an agreement has been signed with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran in order to promote advanced job skills in rural and border areas.
The ministry of higher education and the labor ministry plan to work together to provide university graduates with a special program that would help them get acquainted with job market demands. “The joint plan will be discussed in the next session of the Supreme Labor Council,” Rabiee said.
