A slight drop in the number of professional jobs in the market can be attributed to the Easter holidays interruption, claims Morgan McKinley in response to its monthly Irish Employment Monitor.
Each month, Morgan McKinley’s Irish Employment Monitor checks the pulse of the Irish professional jobs market by tracking the number of new job vacancies and new candidates across the country.
This month’s results show a marginal decrease (4pc) in the number of new professional jobs in the market compared to last month, dropping from 9,246 in March to 8,919 in April. However, looking back to this time last year shows an increase of 5pc on the April 2011 figure.
“This reduction is likely to be a reaction to the ongoing economic domestic uncertainty coupled with the recent European updates of double-dip recession,” says Karen O’Flaherty, COO at Morgan McKinley, explaining the month-on-month decrease. “Seasonally, it is also typical to expect protracted decision-making around the Easter and holiday period.”
The tracker also saw a 15pc decrease in the number of professionals seeking jobs in the Irish employment market since March, however, once again the figure is still showing a significant increase (63pc) on the same time last year. The April 2012 decrease can also be “largely attributed to the reduced momentum over the Easter period,” O’Flaherty claims, adding, “The surge of 63pc compared to April 2011 is a positive sign that passive job seekers are now beginning to explore the jobs market.”
Job creation in pharmaceutical, manufacturing and IT sectors
Despite the economic gloom shrouding Ireland, investment in the pharmaceutical, manufacturing and IT sectors is providing employment opportunities, and O’Flaherty cites the significant job creation at Amgen, Mylan and Cisco in recent months.
She also notes that employers need to make offers that will tempt a mobile and flexible workforce: “Positively, professionals are becoming more mobile and flexible in looking for alternative employment, and employers are more conscious of the need to offer attractive and enticing remuneration packages to secure this talent.”
