We regularly update this report to track the pandemic’s effects on the labour market. 

Job postings on Indeed Ireland have almost recovered to pre-crisis levels. Job postings — a real-time measure of labour market activity — were 0.6% below the 1 February, 2020, pre-pandemic baseline, seasonally adjusted, as of 21 May, 2021. That continues the steady recovery over recent months as the economy gradually reopens.  

Line graph showing job postings on Indeed, Ireland
Line graph titled “Job postings on Indeed, Ireland.” With a vertical axis ranging from -60% to 5%, Indeed tracked the percent change in job postings along a horizontal axis ranging from February 1, 2020, to May 21, 2021. As of May 21, 2021, job postings were 0.6% below the February 1, 2020, pre-pandemic baseline. Caption added post-publicaiton.

Reopening sectors see growth 

Job posting growth over the past four weeks has been strong in sectors reopening or due to reopen over the coming weeks, including beauty & wellness, hospitality & tourism, food preparation & service and sports. 

Table showing job postings in reopening sectors are growing
Table titled “Job postings in reopening sectors are growing.” Indeed compared the percent change in job postings on Indeed Ireland among various sectors divided into strongest performers and weakest performers from February 1, 2020, to May 21, 2021, including the percentage point change since Alrip 23, 2021. As of May 21, 2021, job postings in the agriculture sector saw the greatest change, up 111% from February 1, 2020 baseline. Caption added post-publication.

Dublin continues to lag

Looking at trends in the five largest counties by job posting volume, Dublin remains a notable underperformer (postings 15% below their pre-pandemic level). County Kildare has seen the strongest recovery, with job postings 13% above the baseline.  

Variations between counties reflect the sectoral composition of jobs. Dublin’s weaker recovery is in line with trends seen across European capital cities, which have generally lagged their national economies. 

Line graph showing dublin lags in job posting recovery
Line chart titled “Dublin lags in job posting recovery.” With a vertical axis ranging from -60% to 15%, Indeed tracked the percent change in job postings along a horizontal axis ranging from February 1, 2020, to May 21, 2021, with different coloured lines representing Cork, Dublin, Galway, Kildare, and Limerick. As of May 21, 2021, job postings in Dublin were -15% below the February 1, 2020 baseline. Caption added post-publication.

We will continue to provide regular updates on these trends as the situation evolves. We also host the data behind the postings trends plots on Github as downloadable CSV files. Typically, the site will be updated with the latest data one day after the respective Hiring Lab tracker is published.

Methodology

All figures in this blogpost are the percentage change in seasonally-adjusted job postings since 1 February, 2020, using a seven-day trailing average. 1 February, 2020, is our pre-pandemic baseline. We seasonally adjust each series based on historical patterns in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Each series, including the national trend, occupational sectors, and sub-national geographies, is seasonally adjusted separately. We adopted this new methodology in January 2021. 

The number of job postings on Indeed.com, whether related to paid or unpaid job solicitations, is not indicative of potential revenue or earnings of Indeed, which comprises a significant percentage of the HR Technology segment of its parent company, Recruit Holdings Co., Ltd. Job posting numbers are provided for information purposes only and should not be viewed as an indicator of performance of Indeed or Recruit. Please refer to the Recruit Holdings investor relations website and regulatory filings in Japan for more detailed information on revenue generation by Recruit’s HR Technology segment.