Thousands of businesses cannot find workers to fill job vacancies thanks to a skills shortage that is holding back the Scottish economy, research has shown.
Two thirds of companies were struggling due to a lack of skilled applicants, according to the survey of 500 across every region in Scotland.
Despite the economic downturn, more than half said they had been seeking to hire more staff in the past three months.
The skills gap meant, however, that only 18 per cent had actually increased their workforce over the past three months, according to the survey by the research group Diffley Partnership and the consultancy 56° North.
