The number of jobs advertised online in Ireland has risen by 28 per cent in the last year, a survey revealed today.
The Online Employment Index, compiled by recruitment website IrishJobs.ie, showed there were 79,657 jobs available online in July 2005, compared to 62,348 in August last year.
The past three months saw a 3% rise on the previous quarter, but July's figures were slightly down on June, when a total of 80,464 jobs were adised on Ireland's five main recruitment websites.
Chief executive of IrishJobs.ie, Maria Mahon, said contrary to expectations, June and July had been the busiest months of the year to date. "Despite a traditional slowing down in the recruitment market during the summer months, the latest index has shown that in fact demand for talent amongst Ireland's employers is stronger than ever.
"With the market this busy now, I anticipate another surge in the autumn which is the traditional time for recruitment," she said.
The survey found the banking, financial services and insurance sector had experienced a 12 per cent rise in the number of jobs advertised, up from 12,206 in April to 13,639 in July.
Accounting and finance saw a rise of 6 per cent, while sales and marketing, IT and human resources remained steady. The number of positions available in the legal sector jumped 22 per cent in the three-month period, from 1,716 in April to 2,089 in July.
Jobseekers in the Dublin area had the most options, according to the survey, which found that 72% of positions advertised were in Dublin.
Ms Mahon said despite Dublin being the busiest area for online recruiting, Munster was gaining ground with a 65 per cent increase in jobs available in the region - up from 10,000 in August 2004 to 16,500 in July 2005.
The Online Employment Index monitored the number of jobs available on Ireland's five main recruitment websites: nicemove.ie; IrishJobs.ie; RecruitIreland.com; monster.ie and jobs.ie.