Poole Work Trends

Poole has a wide range of employment sectors including administration, tourism, retail, care and service. Due to its size in relation to Bournemouth and Dorset the number of companies on offer are smaller but the range of choice is relatively high.

Historically Poole’s labour market evolved because of the impact of the harbour and the marine and manufacturing companies which started as a result.

Manufacturing

As with other manufacturing towns across the country the numbers of both the companies and those employed has reduced, but Poole still has a higher than average number of manufacturing companies for the UK. Despite recent concerns the employment market has remained relatively static with demand for highly skilled staff in demand.

Marine

Whilst the marine sector has also reduced in terms of the numbers employed and the boat-building firms in existence Poole has retained a national and international reputation for boat building due to the ongoing reputation of companies like Sunseeker International for high quality.

Recently, a wider more diverse manufacturing base had been introduced. Light engineering, printing, packaging and other production including food and confectionery, also make up the manufacturing face of Poole. Most companies are small to medium in size and based in the industrial estates around the town.

So what does this mean for people looking for work?

Small business need employees with a broader range of skills to cover a smaller number of jobs than a large company, they will also be expected to be more flexible.

In turn, achievement and ability will more visible and therefore should be rewarded quicker. Many staff work their way up and remain in small companies for a long time.

However, not all small companies provide their staff with training as it is difficult to release one member of a small team for the time needed. When considering work it is important that the long-term impact of not receiving formal training and qualifications are balanced against the initial attraction of relatively good levels of pay.

Think carefully about where you want to be in five years time, and could you prove your ability to a different employer without qualifications?