Shortfalls in key areas will hit competitiveness
That is according to the American Chamber of Commerce which represents some of the biggest private sector employers in Ireland and sectors that have best withstood the recession.
The chamber said its members have flagged particular concerns about the dearth of IT graduates and people with language skills.
While it said the problem is not unique to Ireland, it is something employers want to see addressed.
“Since 2008, the start of the downturn, employment in US companies in Ireland has grown by 15% to over 115,000 people. With such strong growth in recruitment in US companies in Ireland, it is inevitable that some encounter difficulties in quickly hiring people with the required skills and experience required to support their business,” it said.
The chamber said it was wrong to categorise the shortage as a problem for IT-focused companies.
“In the area of ICT this has an impact not just on the highly developed IT sector in Ireland but across all areas of industry, as firms in life sciences, finance, and professional services all require workers with these skill sets,” it said.
The chamber has pointed to positive developments such as the Government’s IT action plan. However, it said the problem cannot be solved with indigenous training alone because the Irish education system could not be expected to properly school pupils in the many different languages required by multinational companies. Instead the chamber said the country has to make itself as attractive and as easy a place for skilled people to relocate to and business to recruit into.
“As operations in Ireland have increasingly taken on mandates as headquarters for Europe, as well as for the Middle East, Asia, and North Africa, this introduces the requirement for fluent speakers in a wide range of languages,” the chamber said.
“The reality is that the Irish education system cannot be expected to provide tuition on what will always be niche languages such as those from the Nordic countries.
“Therefore, it is important that Ireland is an attractive location for individuals from across the world to choose to work here. The recent amendments to work permits systems announced by [Jobs Minister Richard] Bruton were very welcome in this regard. While local job creation is always welcome, we cannot avoid looking further afield when required. However, such jobs will underpin local employment.”
