There has been a rise in the number of firms reporting difficulties in recruiting qualified staff, especially technicians, engineers and sales managers.
In one year the number of companies who said they found it difficult to fill vacancies grew by 11%, according to figures from a survey carried out by the human resources firm Manpower, which states that "...
On February 13, representatives from the education and business sector will meet to discuss challenges and achievements in teaching English.
From a press release issued by the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama:
For the first time, representatives from the Panamanian education and business sectors will gather together to discuss challenges and achievements in the field of teaching English at the First National Bilingualism Forum entitled "Building Competitiveness".
APAC Customer Services has announced it will increase its workforce in Panama with the hiring of 100 more employees for its four centers operating in the country.
The company hopes to fill 100 vacant posts before 17 March with customer service representatives who can speak fluent English and Spanish.
APAC Customer Services began operations in Panama in 2006 with 500 employees and currently operates four call centers with over 2,000 employees.
A poor level of English is still one of Latin America's most significant competitive weaknesses, especially in the countries of Central America.
Of the 60 countries evaluated in the English Proficiency Index developed by EF Educatio First (EF EPI), Costa Rica ranks in 37th place, Guatemala at number 52, followed by El Salvador at 53 and Panama at 56.
It is increasingly common for companies to look for accountants, managers, engineers, architects and technicians who are bilingual.
Although more and more companies are looking for bilingual staff, language schools believe that the demand for courses is still too low to meet the needs of entrepreneurs and investment entering the country.
Even so , " Nicaraguans have recently realized the importance of English, it is the language of business worldwide, it is the language of the internet, documents , and they now feel that it is becoming a priority," said Franklin Tellez, academic director of the Nicaraguan American Cultural Center (CCNN) .
The service sector is the fastest-growing (19.9%) with 53,129 social security contributors, about 8,850 more than in the same period in 2012. Up until last September 113,067 new contributors signed up, 15,104 more than the 97,963 reported in the same period last year.
Up until September 113 067 new contributors signed up , 15,104 more than the 97,963 reported in the same period last year.
Located in the Plaza Zona 4 Shopping Center, the new call center consists of training rooms, a medical station, psychologist's room, and coffee room.
"Our expansion is the result of the good service and commitment we provide to our customers. Our plan is to grow and remain an important source of work for Guatemalans" explained Manuel Gordo, CEO of the company.
The demand for professionals who can speak and write English rose by 70%, keeping pace with the growth of joint ventures with overseas companies.
That was the explanation given Bessy Rocio Lara, director of the Department of Labor. Among the areas where the most bilingual staff are needed are the industrial engineering sector, business administration and some technical careers.
Businesses are now demanding that their executives be young people who have better technical training and know a second language.
It is becoming more common for companies to ask that those who aspire to a management or leadership position have a Master's degree. Another important factor when hiring is an age range of between 25-35 years and that they have experience.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to get staff trained to work as freight brokers, which is causing delays in the commercial movements.
According to Daniel Isaza, president of the Logistics Business Council, this causes businesses to become slower. "If we dont have qualified people who speak English, for example, it limits us a little in business, because it makes communication slower," he said.
Engineers in different specialties, sales representatives and administrative assistants, who are all fluent in English, are those most in demand.
The Talent Shortage Survey, conducted by ManpowerGroup Costa Rica among 620 employers, found that in the case of university courses "engineering (with their different emphases) is the only one that stands out in the list of jobs in demand this year ... ", reported Nacion.com.
There is a need for 85% of staff working in hotels speak at least two languages, while some positions requires the mastery of three languages.
This was explained by Jesus Sierra, president of the Panamanian Association of Hotels (APATEL), who estimates that over the next three years they will require approximately 10,000 bilingual people in the country for the hospitality industry.
The demand for qualified bilingual staff required by the Panama hotel sector increases by 20% per year.
This is according to Jesus Sierra, president of the Panamanian Association of Hotels. Something similar is happening in restaurants, where during the last two years the country has opened one new branch a week, something that necessitates having qualified personnel in order to meet the growing demand.
The government of Panama has reduced from seven to two years the timespan for granting Permanent Resident immigration status to professionals in the country.
As explained by the Director of Immigration, Javier Carrillo, the measure seeks to reduce the timeframe and make the process easier. It applies to foreign personnel hired by private companies within 10% of the regular staff and contracted for their technical expertise or within 15% of specialised personnel allowed by law.