Italian firms bridge skills gap with own schooling

After years of informal work as a farm labourer, Federico Olivieri, 29, could not believe it when a huge building site appeared next to his home in Sicily with training on offer for the numerous specialised jobs required.

The programme by Italy’s largest construction group Webuild is among a growing number of ‘academies’ run and financed by companies frustrated by many job-seekers lacking the know-how.

“We are being proactive about the problem. If the skills aren’t there, then...