Employees in the Irish financial services sector took home record annual salaries last year and continued to outperform their counterparts in other sectors, a survey has revealed

The latest employment index for the financial sector conducted by Joslin Rowe also shows that employment in the financial market is proving resilient to turbulent times with salary growth stronger than in previous years.

Pay levels were also up by 13.7 per cent on the figure for last year with the average financial services salary standing at €39,167, a rise of almost €5,000 on the figure for 2006.

The number of vacancies in the financial sector also increased by 22.9 per cent with 590 in December 2007 compared with 480 a year previously.

However, the peak in recruitment dipped significantly in the last two months of 2007. Although there is no specific reason for the decline, according to Paul Cotter, managing director of Joslin Rowe, an uncertain economic climate could explain the fall in the number of vacancies.

"The continuing implications of the US credit crisis and soaring oil prices are feeding a growing sense of alarm. However, Dublin's job market is still way ahead of this time 12 months ago - and is proving remarkably resilient in the face of increased economic uncertainty. There is no need for the financial services community to panic just yet."

He also indicated that the employment outlook within the sector is optimistic as prospects for foreign direct investment and indigenous investment in Irish businesses will provide a greater opportunity for investors.

The time that it took to fill a permanent position fell in the last year. In December 2006 it took 44 days to fill a financial services vacancy. This dropped by 26 per cent to 32 days by the end of last year, a figure which compared well with London and Scotland's financial centres.

Overall, the number of employees in the financial sector rose by 5,400 from 78,800 to 84,200 workers from the second quarter of 2006 to the second quarter of 2007.

Although the number of job seekers rose since the last quarter of 2006, the increase of 13.2 per cent was marginal compared with previous years.

The figure also suggests that although the number of candidates has risen, this has failed to match increases in demand. Accordingly, the shortage of skilled workers in the sector has also resulted in the pay rise for existing financial workers.

While it is expected that companies across the sectors might impose a temporary freeze on hiring levels, Cotter indicated there is a strong demand for workers with employment growth expected to rise in the second half of the year.

"The financial services job market in Dublin also looks healthier than London. The forecast for 2008 will remain strong. We do not expect any redundancies in the sector. As the figures reveal, demand for staff was strong in the second half of last year and we predict this will continue into the second quarter of 2008."