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BANDAR LAMPUNG – Although the unemployment rate in Lampung Province has continued to decline, local businesses are still facing challenges in finding workers with the skills needed by industry.

Data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) shows that Lampung’s open unemployment rate (TPT) stood at 4.19 percent, or around 209,160 people, in August 2024. The figure dropped slightly to 4.07 percent in February 2025.

However, the Chairman of the Lampung Provincial Board of the Indonesian Employers’ Association (Apindo), Ary Meizari Alfian, said the region’s employment issues are far from resolved.

“The main problem is not just the number of unemployed people, but the quality of the workforce. Many companies struggle to find applicants who meet their qualifications,” Ary said on Friday (Sept 12, 2025).

According to him, the biggest challenge is the mismatch between the available workforce and industry demand for specific technical skills.

“There are many job seekers, but most do not yet meet the requirements for certification, hands-on experience, or technical competence. For example, vocational school (SMK) graduates often lack practical field experience, high school graduates still need additional vocational training, and university graduates may be strong in theory but weak in applied skills,” he explained.

Ary also highlighted employers’ concerns about applicants’ soft skills, such as work ethic, discipline, and communication skills.

“This creates an additional burden for companies, as they have to provide internal training to fill those gaps,” he added.

He further noted that job seekers’ digital literacy remains low, even though the era of digital transformation requires proficiency in technology, such as business applications, e-commerce, data management, and office software.

Another problem is the lack of accessible labor market information. Many job seekers are unaware of job opportunities because school and university job portals do not reach all areas.

To address these issues, Apindo Lampung has proposed strengthening link-and-match programs between vocational schools (SMK) and industry. This can be achieved by increasing hands-on training portions and sending teachers for internships in companies to improve their understanding of workplace needs.

Apindo is also advocating for subsidized apprenticeship schemes and short-term training (bootcamps) covering digital literacy, business communication, and professional work attitudes, facilitated through government training centers (BLK) or local training institutions.

Competency certification should also be strengthened so that companies can clearly assess job applicants based on standardized criteria.

“We also hope the government will establish a provincial job-market dashboard to make the matching process between job seekers and available vacancies faster and more efficient,” Ary said.

He emphasized that such efforts must be continuous to ensure that the reduction in unemployment is not just reflected in statistics but also has a real impact on productivity and regional competitiveness.

“Our goal is not merely to lower the unemployment rate, but to ensure that workers are truly job-ready and capable of driving Lampung’s economic growth,” Ary concluded.

Source: kupastuntas.co