Three-quarters of firms hope to raise pay this year

Almost three-quarters of employers are considering increasing staff salaries this year, a survey has revealed.

The study by Dublin-based Abrivia Recruitment found that nearly 90% of firms are either ‘likely’ or ‘very likely’ to hire new staff during 2015; with 73% of those firms looking to fill permanent roles and 74% thinking about raising pay levels.

Abrivia’s managing director, Donal O’Brien, said the move to seek permanent staff is a sign of the rising confidence in the economy.

“Where companies are uncertain about the economic outlook, they generally hire a lot more temporary and contract employees. Some 87% of the companies that were surveyed plan to hire in 2015, but what is especially significant is that almost three-quarters of those roles, 73%, will be on a permanent basis. This is a strong indicator of the way the economy is going,” he said.

Another positive sign has been the increase in demand for HR, IT and telecoms staff.

“Support function roles, like HR and office support, tend to suffer the most in a downturn, so it’s always a good sign when companies start increasing their staff numbers in these areas.”