Cork savoured another high-end jobs boost yesterday — bringing to over 700 the number of new jobs announced for the city in a week.

Concerns have been raised that local authority staff will receive a “sweetheart deal” in their transfer to Irish Water at a wasted cost of €2bn for taxpayers.

A global biotech giant announced 40 new jobs yesterday as it began commissioning its new Irish manufacturing plant — its first outside the US.

Cork Airport has predicted its first passenger growth in almost five years next year following a significant €35m airline route expansion plan announced yesterday.

Within the next two months, early-stage Irish technology firms will be able to benefit from a programme aimed at fast-tracking their entry to the US market and, specifically, the lucrative and high-potential Silicon Valley/San Francisco region.

The Government has launched a €175m seed and venture capital scheme that can be drawn down over the next five years and is aimed at high-growth innovative companies.

The Government has acknowledged that waiting times for employment appeals and equality tribunals are unacceptably long.

Not only did they get top marks in their science subjects in the Leaving Certificate exams — now they’ve struck gold.

Social networking giant Facebook is set to create 100 new jobs at its Irish operations; a move which will take its total employee numbers here to 500.

A LETTING of 11,500 sq ft has gone through under the radar at a new unit at Cork Airport Business Park.

The men who led the Target Express sit-in ended their protest last night after accepting assurances their outstanding pay and redundancy claims will be processed as quickly as possible by the State.

A junior minister has intervened to help a teenager born without limbs source funding to finish a film on her life.

Technology firm Fujitsu has announced a major investment in a research programme with the Digital Enterprise Research Institute at NUI Galway.

Funding from Science Foundation Ireland — the Government’s science agency — has contributed to breakthroughs in areas such as sudden infant death syndrome, cancer, superbugs, and blindness.

IDA Ireland has held discussions with Nama regarding the possibility of freeing up more large-scale office space in the Central Dublin area to house the growing number of foreign companies looking to establish a presence in the capital.

Copyright laws to be signed into effect by Innovation Minister Sean Sherlock will not be used by big websites to “beat down” small ones.

A SENIOR director at the OECD has said that it could take up to 10 years for Ireland’s employment levels to return to normal — contradicting IBEC’s recent forecast of five years.

MUNSTER, and more specifically Cork, looks set for a jobs bonanza as the principal hub of Ireland’s surging microelectronics sector.

The Irish economy has returned to growth, with both home-grown industry and foreign multi-nationals improving business, official figures have revealed.

IRELAND’S seasonally adjusted trade surplus reached a record high of nearly €4.1 billion in June — keeping the country on course to meet a new peak for the full year.

IT is very unlikely a voluntary code of practice will be agreed in the grocery goods sector, due to the wide disparity of views amongst stakeholders.

STRUGGLING to find seats to watch the latest blockbuster could become a problem of the past thanks to the brainpower of a group of young Wicklow inventors.

The Small Firms Association has welcomed Enterprise and Innovation Minister Batt O'Keeffe's meeting with top bankers to discuss lending to small and medium-sized businesses.

Enterprise and Innovation Minister Batt O'Keeffe is to meet top bankers to discuss lending to small and medium- sized businesses.

ENERGY, Communications and Natural Resources Minister Eamon Ryan will today aim to forge links with green technology firms in Silicon Valley in the US.

Natural Resources Minister Eamon Ryan will today aim to forge new links with 'green tech' firms based in Silicon Valley in the US.