> we're still seeing companies complain that there is a skills shortage and a lack of talent.

The truth is these companies want Stanford, Oxbridge, MIT engineers for minimum wage or close to free. But of course, no-one that will work to be exploited for their below low-ball offers.

Thus, they scream for the bullshit "skills shortage" delusion. The ones that continue to do this are almost certainly joke companies that can't afford market rate.

The hypocrisy in these situations is what I find annoying. Try to apply that in a different context "I can't find a Ferrari for the price of Ford, we have a Ferrari shortage!" and people would think you're a lunatic. But if you wrap that in "concerns about the economy" somehow, people take it seriously.