Employment Monitor - March 2010

“Monitoring the pulse of the Irish professional jobs market”

March 10 sees Irish professional job vacancies rise 15% on March 09

Highlights

• During March 10 the number of new professional job vacancies increased by 15% compared to the same month a year ago
• Month-on-month, job opportunities for professionals decreased by 13% in March 10
• In Q1 10 professional job opportunities rose by 18% from Q4 09 and by 33% from Q3 09
• The number of professionals searching for a new role in March 10 fell by 22% compared to February 10
• However, compared to March 09 there was an 8% increase in professionals looking for new jobs in March 10
 

Irish professional jobs market sees quarterly growth

March 10 saw a 15% increase in new professional job opportunities in Ireland compared to the same month a year ago with opportunities rising from 4,266 4,896.  However, month-on-month professional job vacancies in March 10 fell from 5,633 to 4,896 – a 13% decline.  This ends five consecutive monthly increases in new job vacancies registered since October 09, although the number of vacancies coming on to the market this month remains higher than at any point in 09.   

In addition, quarterly comparisons show an increase in professional job opportunities of 18% from Q4 09 and 33% from Q3 09 compared to Q1 of this year.

There was a decrease of 22% in the number of professionals looking for jobs from 15,060 in February 10 to 11,790 in March 10. However, compared to the same time last year, the number of professionals entering the jobs market in March 10 rose by 8%. 
 

Brian Murphy, CEO, Premier Group Ireland commented:

“While the number of new roles coming on to the professional jobs market in Ireland March 10 was down on the previous month, this fall should be considered in the context of the overall improvement in outlook in the first quarter of this year.  Looking back to the previous two quarters, job opportunities in Q1 10 were 33% above Q3 09 and 18% ahead of Q4 09.

“In the first three months of 2010, most permanent hiring has come from multinational organisations, although there are some signs that the SME sector is becoming more active. Roles that have seen a rise in demand include recently qualified accountants and sales professionals across multiple industry sectors.  In addition, there has been an increase in opportunities for software developers and programmers; planners and procurement professionals in the supply chain sector and pharmaceutical R&D professionals. 
“Across all sectors in March 10 many employers continued the trend of the previous two months, favouring the hiring of staff on temporary and fixed term contracts to meet their resourcing requirements rather than offering permanent roles."

“The number of new professionals looking for jobs in March 10 declined by 22% on the February 10 figures. While this is a significant decrease it is reflective of a seasonal trend experienced every year as a disproportionate number of professionals consider their career options as the New Year starts.”

Chart: New jobs v. new candidates

-ENDS-
Notes to editors

Further press information:
Cian Connaughton

MKC Communications

Tel: + 353 87 6480809

Email: cian@mkc.ie 
 
About the Premier Group Irish Employment Monitor

The Premier Group Irish Employment Monitor measures the pulse of the Irish professional jobs market by tracking the number of new job vacancies and new
candidates within the Republic of Ireland each month. The first Premier Group Irish Employment Monitor was launched in May 2009 with data from April 2008
onwards. 

Statistical methodology

Monthly new jobs and new candidate figures are based on Premier Group’s own monthly records of new permanent job vacancies and new candidates registering
with the firm for permanent employment. Statistics for the full market are derived using Premier Group’s own market share.

Job classification

Job vacancies are professional level roles within the following sectors and functions; Banking & Financial Services, Commerce & Industry finance,
Insurance, Public Practice & Tax, Legal, HR, IT, Life Sciences, Engineering, Process & Manufacturing, Professional Services, Sales & Marketing, Customer
Service, Secretarial & Office Support.

Geography

The data is based on new job vacancies and new candidates registered with Premier Group’s network of Irish offices in Cork, Dublin, Kilkenny, Limerick
and Waterford.

About Premier Group
Premier Group is Ireland's leading recruitment consultancy with offices in Cork, Dublin, Kilkenny, Limerick, and Waterford. Internationally, the Group
operates from 24 offices across eight countries. Subsidiary brands within Premier Group in Ireland include Accreate Executive Search & Interim, Brunel,
la crème, Premier, and Verkom. Morgan McKinley and iQ selection also form part of the Premier Group outside of Ireland.

http://www.premiergroup.ie/ 

Morgan McKinley London Employment Monitor

Premier Group currently publishes a similar monitor in London under its subsidiary brand name, Morgan McKinley. The highly regarded Morgan
McKinley London Employment Monitor was launched in 2004 and reports on the new roles, candidates and salaries within the financial services jobs market
in London each month. Visit http://www.morganmckinley.co.uk/ for details.