Lonely hearts club land will add to our woes

WHEN a ship is sinking, it is accepted wisdom that the women and children should go first. Ireland hit an iceberg a few years ago and, as it went down, so too did the one industry that was keeping it afloat.

With half of those on the live register having previously worked in construction and having now set their sights on Sydney and Melbourne, all that is left behind are the women and children. Well, not quite, but the situation Ireland has found itself in has created a big social problem. Nightclub dance floors are lonely spots these days. The young are leaving the problems behind.

The country was blind-sided by a massive construction boom. People had jobs and life was good. However, now that there are no more houses to be built, thousands of construction workers have found themselves out of work. Many have been left with no option but to emigrate. In a reversal of the 2006 census there are now more females than males in Ireland, with 981 men for every 1,000 women.

Reports recently suggested a construction worker in Australia could make more than $150,000 (€109,000) a year, more than a doctor or lawyer.

Last week, the Earthquake Commission of New Zealand caused a few tremors of its own when it reportedly said it wanted to recruit thousands of Irish construction workers as part of a major rebuilding project in Christchurch.

However, they had to quickly set the record straight a few days later, when out-of-work construction workers began appearing on Irish TV stations saying they were packing their bags and going.

The New Zealand Earthquake Commission’s chief executive Ian Simpson had to come out and say workers in Ireland should wait until the jobs are actually advertised before heading over, adding that local workers will be given priority.

Even so, officials at VisaFirst.com said it had been inundated with calls from construction workers who wanted to go to New Zealand. They said they think up to 3,000 Irish construction workers will head to New Zealand before the end of the year.

What this goes to show is that there is a serious appetite in Ireland among those who worked in construction to emigrate to more favourable shores.

This is having an effect across society. GAA and soccer clubs are folding because they cannot attract players. Parents have to say goodbye to their children. Companies can no longer stay in business and are forced to close their doors — many after years of successful trading.

A gender imbalance in a country can lead to social instability. In China, famously, this has become a major issue for government. It leads to fewer marriages and fewer children being born.

There were reports last year from Latvia, where there are 8% more women than men, that single women were finding it very difficult to find a partner.

Ireland is far from such a crisis situation, but this exodus of construction workers is certain to test the limits.

If there was more of a focus on keeping construction workers in Ireland and getting them back to work, possibly through retraining, then this would result in unemployment levels dropping. Avenues include grant incentives for people looking to invest in their homes, making courses available that are targeted to those in construction. If more people are working, more are spending, keeping the economy ticking over. The government will take in more income tax and VAT.

The massive number of job losses in the construction industry cannot be ignored. It must be seen as a priority by the Government. If not, people will continue to leave and the lonely hearts club will continue to grow.