BICS weighted Scotland estimates: data to wave 77

This is the 61st publication of weighted Scotland estimates from the ONS’ BICS. These are experimental statistics, which means that they are still in development. All results are provisional and subject to revision.

Latest main findings for businesses with 10+ employees and a presence in Scotland

• in the period 20 February to 5 March 2023 (Wave 77), 37.7% of businesses reported experiencing a shortage of workers - rising to 54.8% in the Accommodation & Food Services sector and 50.2% in the Construction industry sector
• in Wave 77, 62.0% of businesses reported that the shortage of workers has resulted in employees working increased hours
• in Wave 77, 17.3% of applicable businesses reported that they had been affected by industrial action in January 2023
• the main concerns for businesses for March 2023 were energy prices (26.6%) and inflation of goods and services prices (20.5%)
• of businesses currently trading that have exported in the last 12 months, 14.7% reported exporting less in January 2023 compared to January 2022, and 28.0% reported exporting more
• the exporting and importing challenges that were most commonly reported to have increased in Wave 77 were additional paperwork and changes in transportation costs– this was the case for both exporting and importing