A levy/grant system exists in the UK construction industry to
provide financial support for companies undertaking training
activities. With the current UK government skills policy, there
is an emphasis on ensuring that training support provided to
employers is aimed at enhancing companies’ profitability. This
paper explores the profitability of construction companies in
relation to training grants. Inferential and descriptive statistics
were used to analyze a uniquely combined dataset over the
period 2002–2005. The research revealed that there is not a
simple linear relationship between training grants and profitability.
However, large and more profitable companies claimed
more training grants in relation to the following areas of training:
management, qualifying their existing workforce (certifying
the skills of their existing workforce) and developing training
plans. The authors argue that training grants should be targeted
and focused towards specific areas of training if profitability
gains are to be achievable. Future research should consider
training grant utilization within the context of construction
companies in order to ascertain the real contribution of training
grants to their profitability