UAE: More than 60% of employees worry their skills may not be relevant in long term

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UAE More than 60% of employees worry their skills may not be relevant in long term

Over 60 per cent of surveyed UAE employees are worried that their qualifications, skills and experiences will not remain relevant in the long term. This was revealed in a survey of over 1,000 residents by a local institute.

Commissioned by the Institute for Future Readiness, a UAE-based capacity builder, the study explored attitudes towards continuous learning and skill development.

“The skills required to become and remain future-ready are no longer optional, but a must,” said Dr Selina Neri, CEO, dean and co-founder of the institute. “While participants in the study are optimistic about the future, they are equally worried about how to stay relevant and continuously update their skills.”

The majority — 71 percent — believe in lifelong learning as a way to be ready for the future. The poll, which was conducted in the last quarter of 2024, surveyed UAE residents between the ages of 18 and 45.

In an earlier article, Khaleej Times had reported a top HR professional saying that the half-life of job skills is now between three and four years.

“That means every three or four years we’re going to have to retrain the skills we have,” said Peter Cheese, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). “We are seeing the impact of technology and artificial intelligence on work, and we are seeing how organisations are having to change what they do to respond to this changing world.”

Company support

Despite the continued focus on upskilling, only 22 per cent of respondents felt their employers provide adequate upskilling opportunities.

“By investing in holistic development, individuals and organisations can not only keep pace with change but also unlock their full potential and secure their future-readiness,” said Captain Majed Al Marzouqi, director general and co-founder of the Institute for Future Readiness.

Meanwhile, a 2024 global talent trends study by consulting company Mercer had shown that more than 50 per cent of C-suite leaders believe that investing in employee upskilling would give the biggest boost to productivity in their organisation.

A spokesperson for the company had said that almost half of the surveyed company leaders had seen skills shortage as a major threat to their business. “In other words, the lift in productivity expected from innovations like AI will only come if people are reskilled and ready to incorporate these solutions into new working practices,” said Radhika Punshi, managing director of Mercer Talent Enterprise.

Earlier this month, The Future of Jobs Report 2025 published by the World Economic Forum (WEF) had ranked the UAE 11th among countries that will see the biggest disruption in the job market, with 41 per cent of workers’ core skills changing between 2025 and 2030.