The latest IrishJobs.ie Index has revealed a steady upward trend at the end of 2010 as the number of jobs advertised online grew by 3pc in the fourth quarter compared with Q3.
The Jobs Index, which measures jobs advertised online across five leading online recruitment sites, showed that figures for Q4 exceeded the benchmarked index of April 2009 by 30pc, demonstrating optimism in the jobs market.
Jobs advertised online for the production, manufacturing and materials sector had the highest increase, up by 22pc. The IDA October 2010 report revealed that an excess of €5bn in FDI projects approved by the IDA over the last three years were in manufacturing.
Science, pharmaceutical and food experienced a significant increase of 19pc in Q4, in comparison with the previous quarter. Other sectors that saw an increase in jobs activity included marketing, up 18pc, engineering and utilities, up 16pc, accountancy and finance, up 13pc, IT, up 12pc and customer service and call centres, up 8pc.
Throughout 2010, there is evidence of a steady pattern of growth across many sectors, according to the IrishJobs.ie Jobs Index. In the case of IT, this has been supported by expansion and job creation in both new and established Irish tech companies. Global tech companies also continued to support increased job vacancies in the ICT sector.
“We are seeing steady activity in the online jobs market buoyed by multinationals, the IT industry and professions such as accountancy and finance,” said Jane Lorigan, managing director, Saongroup.com Ireland, parent company of IrishJobs.ie.
“This is encouraging and we hope that this positive jobs market activity may be sustained and accelerated in 2011, supported by sound policy on jobs and competitiveness. It may be anticipated that a new Government will focus on the key tasks of job creation, with an emphasis on technology, engineering and science, which the Jobs Index would certainly back up.”
A reduction in the number of jobs advertised online in Q4 compared with Q3 2010 was apparent in the education and child care sectors, which was down 18pc, hotel and catering, down 14pc, and retail down 4pc.
