ABSTRACT

One of the greatest concerns of employers of labour is to employ graduates with required employability skills for an improved organizational productivity. This study assessed employability skills needed by business education graduates by employers of labour in Rivers state. A descriptive survey design was adopted in the study while 162 employers of labour were sampled in seven selected Local Government Areas of Rivers state with the aid of questionnaires. Descriptive analysis and t-test were used to test the research questions and the hypotheses respectively. A p-value was set at 0.05 level of significance with the aid of SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) version 22. The results showed that there is no significant difference (p>0.05) between private and public employers on skills needed by business education graduates in Rivers State. However, there is a significant difference (P<0.01) between the male and female employers on skills needed from business education graduates in Rivers State. Male employers (with mean =3.33) have higher needs than the female employers (with mean =1.63)]. The problem-Solving and creative thinking skills was the most needed skills especially by the male employers (with mean of 3.58) while Flexibility and adaptability skills is the least needed skill (with the mean of 3.16 for males). Meanwhile, female employers needed office technology and management skills mostly from the business education graduates (with the mean response of 2.13).The universities system should be well developed to accommodate all needed skills by business education graduate to become easily employable.