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Tag: job market

Ireland’s Job Market – Which professional sectors are in high demand?

Posted on by bwa

Whenever a family chooses to emigrate to another country, there are a number of factors to consider, such as quality of education and job market prospects, as these may affect your children’s future. It would defeat the purpose of studying abroad if your children were not able to find a good job after graduation and subsequently remigrate. In recent years, Ireland has become one of the top immigration destinations, partly due to its unrivaled advantages in education and thriving job market.

Before looking into Ireland’s job market, let’s talk about how outstanding Irish education is. Ireland has one of the best education systems in the world, ranking seventh globally. As mentioned in our blog “Irish education – a future for your children”, Ireland remains the only English-speaking country in the EU following Brexit. An Irish education is strongly influenced by Britain, and the education systems of Hong Kong, Ireland, and the UK have many similarities. The primary goal of Irish education is to provide cultural, artistic, sporting, psychological and spiritual development as well as to prepare children for academia.

Under the Common Travel Area (CTA) arrangement between Ireland and the United Kingdom, Irish citizens are entitled to live, work and study in the UK. Through the Ireland Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP), your children can obtain residency status in Ireland and will be eligible for an Irish passport when they are aged 18 or over and have been residents in the state for at least five years. Once your children become Irish citizens, they can choose to study at top universities in the UK or Ireland. If they opt for a British university, they can qualify as local students and pay the ‘home rate’ instead of overseas rates, saving nearly three times the tuition fees.

Job Market

With the rapid growth of the Irish economy in recent years, local companies have continued to expand and are hiring more graduates. Of all EU member states, Ireland was the only one that maintained economic growth amid the global pandemic in 2020. GDP expanded by 3.4% according to the Central Statistics Office Ireland, despite falling 6.3% in the EU overall (and by 6.8% in the eurozone).

Boasting a competitive corporate tax rate of 12.5%, Ireland offers an attractive taxation framework and has been one of the most attractive countries for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), while maintaining the highest economic growth rate in Europe for six consecutive years.

Ireland is home to:

  • Global tech giants, including Apple, Microsoft, and Google
  • 9 of the world’s top 10 pharmaceutical companies, including Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson
  • 18 of the world’s top 25 MedTech companies
  • Half of the world’s top 50 banks
  • More than 250 global financial institutions

What is the job market in Ireland like? Take a look at the following data:

  • Many new job openings
    The number of job postings increased by 34% in 2021 Q1 compared to the previous quarter, according to the latest Irish Jobs Index by ie. This shows that Irish companies have quickly recovered from the pandemic and are actively expanding.
  • The new financial hub of Europe
    According to New Financial, more than 400 financial firms have moved from the UK as a result of Brexit, of which 135 chose to relocate to Ireland (the most in Europe). New Financial expects relocation numbers to increase over time, with Ireland continuing to be the biggest beneficiary.
  • Europe’s Silicon Valley
    As stated by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment of Ireland, there are currently more than 80,000 tech professionals in Ireland, with a further 8,000 IT job openings forecast each year in Ireland.
  • Talent from all over the world
    According to Eurostat, 1 in 8 people living in Ireland come from abroad, which is among the highest in Europe.

Top Sectors in Ireland

It is easier for your children to find a job after graduation if they specialize in one of the country’s booming sectors. So, what are the key sectors that have prospered in Ireland? Here are the 7 best-paying industries in Ireland, according to CPL’s latest Salary Guide for 2021:

Industry Top Salary in 2020
1 Accountancy & Tax €150K – €275K
2 Finance Services €190K – €260K
3 Legal €120K – €200K+
4 Marketing €95K to €160K
5 Life Sciences €155K – €280K
6 Technology €120K – €280K
7 Technology, Infrastructure €120K – €140K

After considering some of the most popular industries, below we detail four noteworthy sectors in Ireland based on data and trends:

Financial Sector

Ireland, the only English-speaking country in the EU, remains the top destination for financial firms to relocate to after Brexit, which brings Ireland’s prosperous financial industry to the next level. The funds and asset management sector have long been in high demand, while risk and compliance professionals are also attractive as Ireland’s fintech space continues to boom.

Due to the growing complexity of financial markets and transnational transactions, demand for taxation professionals such as tax accountants and tax analysts is also rising.

Ireland-Job-Market_Finance-District-at-Dublin

The financial district of Dublin, Ireland

Life Sciences & Pharmaceuticals Sector

The global demand for medical and healthcare products is increasing day by day. Did you know that Ireland is one of the world’s largest exporters of pharmaceutical products? More than 85 pharmaceutical companies operate over 100 facilities in Ireland, and 9 of the world’s top 10 pharmaceutical companies are established in Ireland. In 2020, Ireland’s total exports of pharmaceutical products hit a record high, reaching US$65.73 billion.

Ireland’s significant pharmaceutical sector plays a decisive role in creating employment. Jobs related to life sciences and pharmaceuticals have been featured on Irish job search platforms for many years, and the Covid-19 pandemic has provided the development of the industry with a boost. According to CPL, professionals in areas such as MSAT, quality, and chemistry R&D are in high demand.

Ireland-Job-Market_Life-Sciences-&-Pharmaceuticals-Sector

Life sciences and pharmaceuticals are one of the most popular sectors in Ireland

Technology Sector

Technology has always been one of Ireland’s key sectors. Ireland is home to a huge array of tech giants, such as Apple, which has been based in Cork since 1980. In Dublin’s Silicon Docks, you will find the European Headquarters of other tech giants such as Google and Twitter, and e-commerce stars like Amazon and PayPal. Many Chinese tech companies have also entered Ireland in recent years. For example, Tik Tok, a viral social video-sharing app, announced in 2020 that its European headquarters will be located in Dublin.

Fun Facts

  • Brendan Greene, the creator of the world-renowned multiplayer shooting game PUBG, is Irish.
  • Many companies in Ireland like to hire foreign nationals. For example, LinkedIn’s 1,600 employees in Ireland speak 35 languages; Google’s 70,000 employees in Ireland speak 49 languages. Many people, even if they are not EU citizens, come to Ireland to look for job opportunities.
  • In May 2021, Google and Dublin City Council launched “Air View Dublin”, an initiative that measures air quality across the city.

Construction and Engineering Sector

According to Construction magazine’s annual Top 50 CIF Contractors listing for 2019, the top 50 Irish contractors reported total turnover of €8.39 billion in 2018, an increase of more than €1.5 billion over 2017. Amid Covid-19 and lockdowns, the construction industry has been hit hard and has met with many challenges. However, with the introduction of vaccines and the potential stabilization of the pandemic, the construction industry in Ireland is gradually getting back on track.

According to CPL’s report, the most buoyant areas in construction include social housing, hospital builds and infrastructure, in addition to residential and commercial buildings.

Ireland-Job-Market_Construction-Sector

As one of the leading real estate developers in Ireland, Bartra has lodged a planning application for a major new community development with 1,047 A-rated social, affordable and private homes in the former O’Devaney Gardens site in Dublin 7, which has been the subject of discussion for more than 25 years. There will be two new parks, dedicated cultural and community spaces, shops, cafés and a crèche, comprising a sustainable, enterprising community that meets the needs of future residents.

Summary

Ireland’s economic success is no fluke, but the result of years of hard work by the Irish government. Diversified industries have laid a solid foundation for the Irish economy, which has remained resilient during the pandemic. As such, whether for education or employment, Ireland holds the title of the best immigration destination in Europe.

 

(Part 1) Brexit and beyond: 8 things to know about the future of the UK and Europe

Posted on by bwa

The UK and the European Union (EU) finally agreed a deal on Christmas Eve that will define their future relationship. It replaces the partnership they have shared for the last 47 years. But will this take Brexit off the front pages or stop Brits talking about it? Or has the real Brexit battle only just begun? We have put together a summary of Brexit-related information to help you gain a better understanding of what the future holds for the UK and Europe.

What do we know about the deal?

The 1,246-page trade agreement has detailed provisions on many issues and contains new rules for how the UK and EU will live, work and trade together. Importantly, it means no tariffs or quotas will be introduced. However, while the deal came into force on 1 January, with everything left so late many people and businesses have not had much time to prepare for the changes.

There are four key things to be aware of:

1. Economy

The British government’s own fiscal watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), has said that the deal will dampen long-term GDP by 4%, meaning Brexit is projected to do more economic damage to Britain than COVID-19. The deal is also seen as a ‘thin’ deal, which means it leaves many unresolved issues to be dealt with in later negotiations.

Yes, the UK has avoided tariffs on trade, but there will now be other complexities and mountains of paperwork. The UK benefited from access to more than 20 EU systems, which do everything from track the movements of goods and vehicles to store risk profiles for goods and producers from around the world, with the UK sharing its own data as part of this. But after Brexit, although tariffs for goods will be dropped, more friction may ensue as a result of other trade barriers, such as the administrative burden on traders, complicated border processes, and limited information sharing between customs authorities. Additionally, the new import and export declarations alone are likely to cost UK companies £7.5 billion ($10.3 billion) annually, according to HM Revenue & Customs.

Unemployment will also be a challenge post-Brexit. Since the June 2016 referendum, the job market has been contracting, with many companies leaving the UK, downsizing or cutting jobs. For example, in the financial services sector, Aviva, Britain’s second-largest insurer, stated that it would move £7.8 billion worth of assets to Ireland, while Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) announced a merger between its UK and Irish subsidiaries, transferring 125 jobs to Dublin, which remains BAML’s European headquarters. Additionally, British bank Barclays is transferring £166bn of its clients’ assets to the Irish capital, while Credit Suisse plans to move about 250 bankers from London to other European financial hubs. According to EY, £1.2 trillion ($1.6 trillion) of assets, along with around 7,500 employees, have been transferred out of the UK to the EU, including to Dublin, Luxembourg, Frankfurt and Paris by financial services firms.

Job UK

UK unemployment is forecast to reach 2.6 million by mid-2021, according to the government’s economic watchdog, which represents 7.5% of the working-age population. This will compound the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in nearly 300,000 jobs lost in the hospitality sector since February 2020. In addition, retail has shed 160,000 jobs as non-essential shops have been forced to shut, and culture has seen 89,000 jobs go. And those figures are only for staff on company payrolls; thousands more casual workers and freelancers have been affected too. It seems unlikely that the UK’s economy will rebound quickly.

2. End of free movement

UK citizens and residents will no longer have the right to work, live, study or start a business in the EU without a visa, though short stays will be allowed (visa waivers will apply). This doesn’t help those seeking to travel frequently and do business in the EU. Comparing market capacity, the UK’s population is about 66.4 million, but the European Union’s, excluding the UK, is six times larger, which may lead to unfavourable business opportunities.

COVID-19 has also movement less free. The UK is Europe’s worst-hit country, with more than 40 countries banning UK arrivals in December 2020. There were hundreds of passengers at London’s Heathrow Airport scrambling onto the last flight to Dublin minutes before a travel ban set in at midnight on 20 December to nations across Europe. Tighter measures may apply with prolonged quarantine and pre-departure PCR tests likely required even when the situation begins to ease.

3. Education

Students and young people from Britain will no longer be able to take part in the Europe-wide Erasmus exchange programme. Since 1987, the Erasmus programme has provided opportunities for students to go on exchange abroad, linked schools across the EU and offered work experience and apprenticeships in European countries. Around 200,000 people, including 15,000 British university students, have participated in the programme in its latest incarnation.

Vivienne Stern, the Director of Universities UK International, told The Guardian, “As I understand it, there will be grants for young people not just in universities but broader than that, to support study and possibly working and volunteering. These experiences help graduates gain employment, especially for students from low-income backgrounds who are the least likely to be able to travel abroad otherwise.” She added that any Erasmus replacement needed to be “ambitious and fully funded”, and that it “must also deliver significant opportunities for future students to go global, which the Erasmus programme has provided to date.”

4. Financial services competitiveness

No deal has been agreed for financial services, which will be worrying for many would-be emigrants holding professional qualifications, particularly as these qualifications will no longer be mutually recognised between the UK and EU and professional persons will have to be separately registered in each.

The EU and UK have not yet struck a deal that will provide UK banks and asset managers with access to European markets. EU regulators are unlikely to allow London to keep the benefits of the single market without its obligations, and EU banks will have to cease from using platforms in the UK for swaps, certain derivatives and Euro-denominated stocks from January. UK financial services firms will lose their passporting rights, which in the past allowed them to sell funds, debt, advice, or insurance into the EU from their UK base without the need for additional regulatory clearances.

Investment-stock-marke

Worse, it means that UK firms have to agree and comply with the individual rules of each of the EU 27 Member States if they wish to sell financial services there. The implications for a loss of financial services activity from the UK to the EU are significant.

Due to Brexit, almost 30 financial groups have moved operations from London to Dublin. “We’re now seeing those financial services firms who have relocated, gained their licensing and are operationally ready, focus a lot more on ‘business as usual’,” said Cormac Kelly, financial services Brexit lead for EY Ireland in an interview with the Irish Times.

The post-Brexit trade agreement leaves many questions unanswered, but while there is uncertainty, there is likely also opportunity. Stay tuned for Part 2 of our Brexit and beyond article, where we look at what else lies ahead for the UK and the EU.

Many of our clients are looking for an alternative to UK immigration after Brexit, while we are also receiving enquiries from the UK for Ireland immigration advice. Read our article on UK immigration post-Brexit to find out more.