Half of Irish firms negatively impacted by ongoing labour shortage – survey

Half of Irish-based employers say the ongoing labour shortage is negatively impacting their business. That's according to a survey by recruitment firm Hays Ireland.

Almost 40 per cent of firms here said the staff shortages had undermined their ability to deliver key projects while 30 per cent claimed it has stalled their plans for expansion.

One in five employers suggested recruitment challenges were impacting their profitability and revenues.

The research, published as part of the Hays Ireland salary and recruiting trends guide 2022, surveyed a total of 1,500 Irish-based employers and employees.

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Other prominent challenges cited by employers due to skill shortages included: employee morale (38 per cent); business development (27 per cent); customer/client service (24 per cent); innovation/creativity (16 per cent) and absenteeism due to stress (14 per cent).

The majority of employers (68 per cent ) cited competition from other employers as the primary cause of their inability to meet their recruitment and retention goals. Other prominent reasons cited included a shortage of new talent entering their industry (33 per cent), individuals leaving to work in other industries (17 per cent) and people moving to other geographic regions (13 per cent).

According to Maureen Lynch, director at Hays Ireland, "the competition for talent has been a universal challenge for Irish-based employers throughout 2021 and we expect this trend to continue into the new year, based on the findings in our Hays Ireland Salary and Recruiting Trends Survey, published earlier today.

“In line with the report’s findings, it is telling that nearly two in five Irish employers are more likely to make counter-offers to resigning staff than they were pre-pandemic,” she said.

“This development points to employers’ acute awareness of the ongoing competition for talent, and the time and resourcing that goes into replacing in-demand skillsets,” she said.

“At a more macro-level, it is well documented that the Irish economy has rebounded strongly in the second half of the year and Irish employers understandably want to capitalise on this growth and position themselves for further expansion in the 12 months ahead,” she added.

“To this end, it is important that we look to identify meaningful solutions, including tackling recent work permit delays, to alleviate ongoing recruitment pressures,” Ms Lynch said.