Then the recruiter spots the glaring errors , , the candidate has spelled the name of the company incorrectly, has a couple of bad grammatical errors on the covering letter and some more dodgy spellings on the CV.

Result? The CV is binned, even though the candidate's experience would otherwise make him or her a prime candidate for the job. A bit too harsh because of a couple of spelling mistakes? Not in the eyes of an employer , , how can someone who won't even proof read his or her CV be trusted with an important position within the firm?

Lack of basic literacy is a growing problem among the workforce. In the UK, the Confederation of British Industry last year called for a new literacy and numeracy strategy for 14- to 16-yearolds. It says employers are growing more dissatisfied with school-leavers , , its surveys have shown that a third of companies provide remedial training to young people and 47pc of firms said they were dissatisfied with school-leavers' basic literacy and numeracy skills.

In Ireland, IBEC has called for priority to be given to initiatives that address the needs of workers with poor numeracy and literacy skills, as these are a crucial basic skill for knowledge-economy workers.

In 2004, the Department of Education and Science budgeted 18.45m for adult literacy initiatives in this country. According to National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) statistics, as of December 2003 there were over 30,000 adult learners in this country , , 18pc of those between 24 and 44 years of age. "We estimate that between 300,000 and 400,000 people in the workplace have low levels of literacy and numeracy, " says Tommy Byrne, PRO for NALA.

Those who have literacy difficulties are finding it harder to make a good first impression on employers and to cope and progress once they enter the workforce. "If helped, it can boost their productivity, motivation and workplace health and safety issues, " he says.

Plain carelessness Problems with basic spelling and grammar can also crop up among graduates , , although these are more likely to be down to general sloppiness than poor basic literacy skills. According to a survey by UK public relations firm Lewis in 2003, which looked at more than 1,000 applications for trainee positions at the company, about 90pc of applicants managed to misspell themselves out of a job by the end of the first page of their covering letter.

Employers can be unforgiving when it comes to basic errors. "First impressions count, " says Deirdre CoghlanMurray of Clark Recruitment.

"If spelling, grammar or layout is not well done, or if the CV appears sloppy, it looks like the candidate did not take time to review their CV or have someone else do it for them. It is hard to read beyond that, because that is the first impression given."

"The standard of CVs we receive on a day-to-day basis varies dramatically, " says Anne Lavelle, consultant with Ann O'Brien Office Specialists. "We have noticed that candidates have become less diligent when applying for a position over the internet.

Some are also a little hasty in submitting their application and fail to do a basic spell-check."

Coghlan-Murray has seen silly mistakes crop up in CVs from senior management, such as using '2005' as the candidate's year of birth. "If we are screening for a particular role and a number of people apply, all of whom have good qualifications, and one person has multiple mistakes on their CV, then quite obviously we would screen based on that person's attention to detail, " she says.

"Sloppiness with basic spelling and grammar can also create a bad impression when in the workplace, " she adds.

WHERE TO GET HELP If you're worried about your CV, here are some tips that might help:

? Don't ignore the computer spellchecker. While it is unwise to rely completely on technology to pick up spelling and grammar mistakes on CVs and job applications, it can be a useful tool. Beware, however, as it can 'Americanise' spellings and will not pick out correctly spelled words that you didn't mean to put there in the "rst place.

? Get a friend to cast an eye over the application. A fresh gaze can pick up spelling and grammar mistakes that you could miss because you have looked at the document too many times.

? University careers services often offer CV advice to graduate job applicants. FAS and recruitment agencies will also advise on appropriate forms for CVs and covering letters when requested.

NOT A GR8 IDEA Cud txt hrt spling? Or for those unfamiliar with the joys of text, could the rise in popularity of SMS messaging hurt basic literacy levels?

That is unlikely among the older generation raised strictly on the 'Three Rs', where a misspelling in the school copybook was likely to be met with a rap across the knuckles. However, it has prompted some concern for children raised in the era of mobile phones, who use text messages "lled with abbreviations and acronyms to keep in contact with their friends.

A case of a 13-year-old Scottish schoolgirl who wrote an essay entirely in SMS language caused concern among teachers last year.

However, according to a small study carried out at City University in London, parents and employers shouldn't worry too much about plummeting literacy among the next generation.

It seems that children are developing a type of bilingualism when it comes to text-messaging language, and can switch between standard English grammar for school assignments and shorter abbreviations when texting.

Indeed, those who text a lot were found to write less and be more concise in their answers to questions , , a useful skill to acquire when waf"ing is frowned upon in exams and business.