A survey has indicated that many businesses are failing to meet their employees’ training needs.

According to research commissioned by IT and business skills provider, Global Knowledge,  72% of employees view learning and development opportunities as being as important as salary when choosing their next job. However, many still have difficulty in gaining the support of their employers to get the training they need.

The results were taken from over 700 respondents who were either responsible for learning and development, or employees within IT and commercial departments. According to the research, 57% of employees responded that they weren’t being given the budget for learning and development opportunities. A further 49% of those surveyed stated they couldn’t get time off work to train.

Allan Pettman, the UK managing director of Global Knowledge, said: “The survey shows that individuals and organisations are on different wavelengths when thinking about training. Employees value training yet it’s sad to see that many employers are failing in their responsibility to match employees’ passion to learn and develop. In tough economic times, it’s more important than ever that employers help their staff to grow and innovate. Failure to invest in training places a burden on employees, many of whom are relying on their skills to remain employable and maintain career progression. These results would suggest that employers are badly letting them down.”