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Reports on Vacancies by Expert Group on Future Skills Needs Highlights Changes
in the Labour Market
A report published today (Monday, 3 March 2003) in two volumes for the Expert
Group on Future Skills Needs, Forfás, and FÁS
by the Economic and Social Research Institute examines the incidence,
level, nature and consequences of vacancies in both the private and public
sectors in Ireland. The reports, National Survey of Vacancies in
the Private Non-Agricultural Sector, and National Survey of
Vacancies in the Public Sector, also provide information on organisations
experiencing difficulties in retaining staff, those with difficult-to-fill
vacancies, recruitment from abroad, and regional variations.
This is the first time that the public sector has been included in a study
of national vacancies. Previous national vacancy studies have focused exclusively
on the private sector. 413 public sector organisations out of a possible
571 successfully completed the survey with an overall response rate of 72
per cent. This represents 163,800 workers or a total of 58 per cent
of relevant public sector employees. By the standard of sample surveys, this
represents a very high response rate in terms of employees covered in the
sample.
According to the report, the Irish economy has experienced a slow down in
employment growth since the last vacancies survey was carried out in 1999/00.
It suggests that this slow down in the growth of employment was expected
as expansion at the rate experienced during the last half of the 1990s was
unsustainable.
Some of the key findings of the report on the private sector are
as follows.
- 22 per cent of firms reported having vacancies in the 2001/02
survey. This represents a significant decrease from the
figure of 31 per cent of firms recorded in the previous survey
in 1999/00. At a sectoral level the biggest decreases were in the
Distributive Services, Construction, and Traditional Manufacturing
sectors.
- There is a substantial fall in the number of vacancies since the
previous survey. Reported vacancies fell from 77,600 to approx. 40,000.
This corresponds to a fall in the vacancy rate, from 6 per
cent of total labour requirement in 1999/00 to 3 per cent in 2002.
- Vacancies by sector: Construction had the highest
vacancy rate at 6 per cent. The lowest vacancy
rates at 2 per cent were in Traditional and Hi-Tech Manufacturing.
- Vacancies by occupation: The highest vacancy
rates were in Skilled Maintenance & Production Operatives
(8 per cent) and Science Professionals and Engineering Technicians
(both 5 per cent). Vacancy rates have fallen for all occupational
groups except Science Professionals, Science Technicians and Other
Associate Professionals. Occupational grades which experienced
a substantial fall in the number of vacancies include Personal
Services, Skilled Maintenance & Production, Clerical & Secretarial,
and Production Operatives. The lowest vacancy rates were
for Managers/Proprietors.
- Just over a quarter (27 per cent) of firms which have current
vacancies said that they had recruited staff from abroad. The
incidence of this was largest in the Transport/Personal/Other Services
(42 per cent of such firms) and Traditional Manufacturing sectors
(35 per cent of such firms).
- The survey indicates that relatively high-skill sectors are likely
to find the workers they require in the EU, while relatively low-skills
sectors are likely to fill their vacancies by recruiting outside
the EU.
Some of the key findings of the report on the public sector are
as follows.
- Overall, the vacancy rate was 4 per cent which
was one percentage point higher than in the private sector at 3 per
cent.
- Vacancies by sector: The highest vacancy
rate was in the Gardai/Defence sector, followed closely
by the Health Service where the rate was almost 6 per cent. Regional
Bodies had a vacancy rate of 4 per cent, while the Civil Service
and Education had the lowest vacancy rate of around
3 per cent.
- Vacancies by occupation: The highest vacancy
rates were for Computer Technical Staff at Associate Professional
Level (13 per cent) and for Engineering Professionals (12 per cent).
There is also a substantially higher than average vacancy rate
for Other Associate Professionals and Science Technicians (both
at 6 per cent). The lowest vacancy rates were
for Transport and Communications workers and Skills Maintenance
and Skills Production workers (1 per cent each).
- The bulk of vacancies in the private sector are
in the intermediate and lower skills levels (almost two thirds).
In contrast, the bulk of vacancies in the public sector (almost
two thirds) are in the intermediate and higher skills levels.
- In total, about one third of all workers recruited from abroad
for both the public and private sectors were from other EU countries
while about two-thirds were recruited from countries outside the
EU.
Dr. Danny O’Hare, Chairman of the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs
said the reports on public and private sector vacancies “provide
a valuable insight into the number of reported vacancies, by
sector and by occupation, and the consequences of those vacancies for the
private and public sector
”.
(Ends).
For further information, please contact:
Cathy Foley, Communications Department, Forfás at 01 607 3046
