Employability Skills of Female Employees from Technical and Vocational Training Institutions in Technical and Technology Job Sector: Employer Perspective

Knowledge-based economy allows for the employment of workforce who maximize their professional and semi-professional undertakings in the job market. In Kenya, employers within the industrial sector employ both graduates of the technical, vocational and education and training institutions (TVETs) as well as those from the informal sector, with little evidence of employment for the female graduates. This study therefore, examined the employability skills of female employees from the TVETs in the technical and technology job sector. The research instrument of the current study adapted from the Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills (SCANS) where 32 items were used. Among the employability skills were thinking skills, personal qualities, sourcing skills, information skills, interpersonal skills, system skills and technology skills. The survey instrument was provided to a total of 189 industry employers in Kenya. the majority of respondents are from the manufacturing/industrial sector (46.6%), followed by artisanal sector (25.4%) and the least was agricultural sector (27.5%). Based on the survey, the study found that employers ranked highly the resource/capability skills, information skills, and the interpersonal skills. Meanwhile, employers rate the female employees moderate to highly in personal quality skills. Skills that were found to moderate were thinking skills, while system and technology application skills were ranked as low. The current results indicate that female posses considerable employability skills capable of working in the technical and technology based fields. Future research should look at how the employability skills blend with technical skills and how this affect the employment status of the female graduates.