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Jobswatch

Employers say hiring outlook 'most encouraging since 2008'

Prospects haven’t looked this good since the year Bertie Ahern stepped down, and Padraig Harrington won the USPGA…

THINGS ARE LOOKING positive in the jobs market, according to a new poll of hundreds of employers carried out by recruitment firm ‘Manpower‘.

The company has issued its first positive quarterly outlook since 2008, with a net improvement of 2 per cent expected in the next three months or so.

A representative sample of 622 employers were surveyed as part of the research — each asked whether they intended to hire new staff, or reduce numbers in the coming quarter. The ‘net employment outlook’ was then calculated by subtracting the employers who plan to cut staffing levels from those planning to expand.

“We are seeing a noteworthy improvement,” Manpower Ireland’s Cara O’Leary said.

“This is the first positive outlook since 2008 which is a very hopeful sign for Irish jobseekers.”

The survey’s key points:

  • Payrolls are expected to grow in seven of the 11 industry sectors, and four of the five regions during Q2. When compared with the previous quarter, the outlook improves in nine sectors and all five regions.
  • The busiest sector labour market is forecast by pharmaceutical sector employers, who report a net employment outlook of plus 14 per cent.
  • Employers in the Transport, Storage and Communication Sector alongside The Wholesale & Retail Trade Sector report the least optimistic hiring plans, with outlooks of minus four per cent.
  • From a regional perspective, Munster employers report the most optimistic hiring plans (+6 per cent), while Dublin employers report the weakest outlook (-5 per cent).

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