Labour market improves despite skills gap

The labour force is growing while more people are returning to work and fewer are being laid off, data released yesterday shows.

Almost all indicators show an improvement in the labour market in 2013 compared to the previous 12 months, but some substantial concerns remain, including the level of unemployment among those under 25 and those seeking work in sectors such as construction and hospitality.

The data is contained in the annual National Skills Bulletin from the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs.

The group’s chairperson, Una Halligan, said that while the outlook for the labour market was improving, significant challenges and skill shortages persist.

“Almost all indicators show improvements in the Irish labour market and this is to be welcomed.

“However, challenges continue to exist with high unemployment rates persisting for those previously employed in construction and elementary occupations, young entrants to the labour market and people with less than higher education attainment,” said Ms Halligan.

“Nonetheless, in 2013, mentions of difficult-to-fill vacancies were more frequent than in preceding years. In most cases these were confined to specialised areas and are small in numbers.

“Shortages have been identified in a number of areas, including information and communication technology, engineering, health, business and finance,” she said.

In 2013, the labour force grew by 10,000 while employment increased by 43,300. The number of redundancies also declined by more than 6,000, from 20,000 to 13,600.

The trend of high emigration also continued with 33,000 more people leaving the country than immigrants coming in.

Employment was also transient for many, as a large number of people moved between employment, unemployment and being economically inactive in the year.