Science and IT sectors'cautious' about hiring amidst trade threats despite a rise in jobs

Irish Independent

25-04-2025

According to hiring website IrishJobs's Jobs Index released today, vacancies have gone up by 5pc but the 'cracks are beginning to show' as a result of the US's tariff threats.
The IT and Science sector which includes multinational businesses in Pharmaceuticals and Life Sciences, that are likely to be most exposed to the tariffs, showed a more cautious hiring sentiment.
The report found that the sectors adopted a 'wait and see' approach to hiring: 'The uncertainty created by this shifting trading environment is already starting to impact hiring sentiment in some internationally traded sectors.'
Julius Probst, European Labour Market Economist at IrishJobs and investment firm Stepstone Group said cracks were beginning to show in the labour market.
'The Irish labour market continues to perform well, with an exceptionally low unemployment rate of 4pc paired with employment gains of about 70,000 throughout 2024,' he said
'However, beneath the surface some cracks are starting to appear. As a small and open economy, Ireland is particularly exposed to global economic conditions. While interest rates are finally coming down, this is mostly due to weak demand in the Eurozone.
'As global economic uncertainty is reaching a record-high due to the US trade war, international companies are becoming more cautious in their hiring approach.'
The report found 'close to record low levels of unemployment and moderate domestic growth' with more consumer-driven sectors in the domestic economy like retail, sport and fitness, and sales had seen significant growth.
The construction sector (5pc) accounted for marginally more vacancies than the IT sector (4.9pc) during the quarter. The highest number of vacancies were seen in the catering sector (11pc), followed by health and sales.
The period also saw hybrid jobs increase to 11pc out of all vacancies even as major companies push for staff to return to the office.
However, Fully remote jobs only saw a slight increase – their availability remained down 80.6pc from the Covid-related peak recorded in 2021.
Large Irish cities saw a larger flux of job vacancies with Galway (22pc) and Waterford (13pc) standing at the top, followed by Dublin (3pc).
Staff nurses, production operators and engineers, and customer and sales assistants were some of the most in-demand roles over the quarter in Galway, while Waterford saw the hiring of more engineers and technicians.