Brussels, 07/03/2012 (Agence Europe) - The economic crisis is forcing companies to reduce their budgets for employee training. Businesses active in the sector of the environment are no exception and are cutting their expenditure on training in “green skills”. But the lack of long-term investment in this segment, particularly in science and technologies, will soon lead to a lack of qualified people in this future-facing sector, with the consequences of negative repercussions on the whole of the employment market. This was the major finding of a recent study by Cedefop (European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training). The publication suggests areas of action to avoid this situation. It recommends greater cooperation between employers, trainers and employees, the development of cohesion policies and careers advice from professional careers advisers, in order to make green training more attractive. The study focuses on all technological areas and draws up an overview of the situation in eight European countries: Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovakia and the United Kingdom. (IL/transl.fl)