Key points:

  • Irish job postings stabilised in May after a wobble in April, pointing to resilient hiring demand despite global uncertainty and volatility.
  • The labour market remains very tight, underpinning continued robust wage growth. 
  • The share of Irish job postings advertising remote/hybrid work opportunities remains close to peaks, suggesting flexible working models persist despite many companies’ focus on workers returning to offices. 
  • Foreign interest in jobs in Ireland has been trending upwards.

Ireland’s labour market remains strong even as global uncertainties have cast doubt over the sustainability of the country’s economic model. Hiring demand has continued to gradually cool but remains at a healthy level, while joblessness remains close to record lows. The tight labour market continues to grant workers significant leverage over pay and conditions. 

Recent global developments have raised concerns that Ireland is exposed to a trade war. Yet, as the OECD highlights, multinationals’ past investments in Ireland in both labour and capital may help mitigate the impact of US tariffs. Moreover, companies may be reluctant to shed too many staff given ongoing significant skills shortages.

For now, the Irish labour market is holding up, generating robust wage growth for workers while remaining a magnet for overseas talent. Recent ECB interest rate cuts provide a cushion for the economy, which may help support hiring demand during the remainder of the year. 

Irish job postings have softened but remain above pre-pandemic levels  

Irish job postings continue to gradually retreat from peaks, though remained 8% above their pre-pandemic baseline as of 6 June. Postings stabilised and grew 1.5% over the month following signs of an accelerated dip in April. That suggests hiring demand remains somewhat resilient despite concerns over the vulnerability of Ireland’s economy to the increased levels of global uncertainty and volatility in recent months. 

Line chart titled “Irish job postings remain above pre-pandemic levels” shows the Indeed Job Postings Index for selected economies from 2020 to 2025. Irish job postings remain above pre-pandemic levels despite having fallen from peaks. 
Line chart titled “Irish job postings remain above pre-pandemic levels” shows the Indeed Job Postings Index for selected economies from 2020 to 2025. Irish job postings remain above pre-pandemic levels despite having fallen from peaks. 

There is considerable variation in sectoral strength. Some categories have job postings well above pre-pandemic levels, including therapy, cleaning & sanitation, education & instruction and installation & maintenance. Occupations where postings are furthest below the baseline include arts & entertainment, marketing, IT operation & helpdesk and mathematics. 

Table chart titled “Sectoral strength varies” shows the Ireland Job Postings Index as of 6 June 2025. Therapy postings are furthest above the pre-pandemic baseline, while Arts & Entertainment postings are furthest below it. 
Table chart titled “Sectoral strength varies” shows the Ireland Job Postings Index as of 6 June 2025. Therapy postings are furthest above the pre-pandemic baseline, while Arts & Entertainment postings are furthest below it. 

Dublin job postings continue to lag 

County Dublin has continued to underperform national trends, reflecting its greater sectoral exposure to the kinds of tech and professional occupations which have experienced some of the biggest overall declines in job postings. Dublin postings currently sit 13% below their pre-pandemic baseline. Of the country’s five largest counties, job postings in Kildare are furthest above the baseline, at +29% as of early June.  

Line chart titled “Dublin postings continue to lag” shows the trend in job postings for the five largest Irish counties. Dublin is the only county where postings are below the pre-pandemic baseline. 
Line chart titled “Dublin postings continue to lag” shows the trend in job postings for the five largest Irish counties. Dublin is the only county where postings are below the pre-pandemic baseline. 

Ireland remains close to full employment

The Irish unemployment rate remains historically low and at a level considered to be essentially full employment, falling to just 4.0% in May from 4.4% a year ago. 

Line chart titled “Irish unemployment rate remains low” shows the unemployment rate from 1998 to 2025. The unemployment rate remained near historic lows at 4.1% in April 2025. 
Line chart titled “Irish unemployment rate remains low” shows the unemployment rate from 1998 to 2025. The unemployment rate remained near historic lows at 4.1% in April 2025. 

While job vacancies are down from peaks, the ratio of vacancies to unemployed people remains higher than in early 2020 (0.23 in Q1 2025 v 0.12 in Q1 2020). With a limited pool of unemployed jobseekers for employers to hire from, candidates retain leverage in the current market. 

Posted wage growth remains robust 

The tight Irish labour market continues to support robust wage growth. Year-on-year posted wage growth as measured by the Indeed Wage Tracker was 4.2% in April (on a three-month average basis). That pace is comfortably above the euro area average of 3.0% over the same period, though below the 5.6% seen in the UK. 

Line chart titled “Irish posted wage growth remains solid” shows the annual growth in posted wages for Ireland, the UK and euro area from 2019 to 2024. Posted wage growth in Ireland remained robust at 4.6% y/y in December. 
Line chart titled “Irish posted wage growth remains solid” shows the annual growth in posted wages for Ireland, the UK and euro area from 2019 to 2024. Posted wage growth in Ireland remained robust at 4.6% y/y in December. 

Official data points to an even stronger picture for pay packets, with average weekly earnings across the broader Irish workforce rising 5.6% year-on-year in Q1 2025 to €1,026. That was up from €972 in the first quarter of 2024. This is the first time the figure has gone above €1,000 since the CSO’s data series began in 2008.

With Irish inflation running at close to 2%, workers are seeing solid pay growth in real term, which is likely to underpin consumer spending over coming months. 

Remote and hybrid work persists

The share of Irish job postings mentioning remote or hybrid work remains close to peaks at almost 17% – more than 4x higher than pre-pandemic levels, despite some organisations announcing stricter office attendance policies in recent months. Offering location flexibility can help organisations save costs and remains an important tool for attracting a broad range of candidates. Professional and tech categories, including IT operations & helpdesk (47%), insurance (43%) and mathematics (39%), are among the occupations with the highest shares of remote/hybrid postings. 

Line chart titled “Remote/hybrid job postings share remains close to peaks” shows the percentage of job postings containing remote and/or hybrid terms from 2019 to 2025. The share remains close to peaks at 17% as of 30 April 2025. 
Line chart titled “Remote/hybrid job postings share remains close to peaks” shows the percentage of job postings containing remote and/or hybrid terms from 2019 to 2025. The share remains close to peaks at 17% as of 30 April 2025. 

Conclusion

Ireland’s labour market has performed remarkably well in recent years and is showing few early signs of significant fallout from whipsawing trade instability. Challenges and uncertainties remain but, in the near term at least, it’s still a favourable market for jobseekers and one where employers continue to face hurdles in filling their skills requirements.