According to the Draghi report, 80% of SMEs need workers with vocational education and training and experience major skills shortages.

Omissions

• The ≈80% ('four in five') figure in EU skills policy measures SMEs reporting difficulty recruiting workers with the right skills generally, not specifically a demand for VET-qualified workers.
• The claim states 'they all experience huge shortages'; the underlying statistic is that roughly four in five SMEs report recruitment difficulties, not that all of them face 'huge' shortages.
• EPRS (2024) summarising the Draghi report notes that skills shortages are a pressing issue for 'over half (54%) of EU businesses', a different and more moderate figure than 80%.
• No primary text from the Draghi report was located confirming that it explicitly states '80% of SMEs need people with vocational education and training'.

Sources

• PrimaryEuropean Commission – Union of SkillsNearly four in five SMEs cannot find the talent they need.
• SecondarySMEunitedNearly four in five SMEs struggle to recruit workers with the right skills.
• SecondaryEPRS – Closing the EU skills gap: Insights from the Draghi reportAs Mario Draghi points out in his September 2024 report, skills shortages are one of the most pressing issues for over half (54 %) of EU businesses, big and small.
• SecondaryEuropean Parliament study – Skilled labour mobility in the EUshowed that nearly four in five SMEs finding it difficult to recruit workers with the right skills, with more than half also...