Job ads index points to recovery

THE number of advertisements seeking workers for the manufacturing, construction and professional sectors showed strong growth last month, according to the latest Bank of Ireland Job Index.

However, the index, which tracks the number of jobs advertised in Irish daily and Sunday national newspapers, showed no overall increase in October. It remains largely unchanged over the same month last year, holding steady at 104 points.

The bank said the stability was due to the strong performance of the private sector, which is up 6%, but this is offset by the continuing decline in the public sector, down 24% on October of last year.