One third of Irish firms hiring - survey

Berkley's Global Job/Workforce Market Sentiment Survey showed that while 25.6pc of Irish firms surveyed in the first three months of 2010 said they were hiring, this has now risen to 36.5pc in the second quarter.

However, in global terms this hiring figure is relatively subdued, with Berkley’s surveys for companies hiring in Switzerland, Australia/NZ, China and Singapore ranging from 71.4pc to 67.8pc.

The survey also showed Irish companies are now more hopeful regarding the global downturn, with 72pc believing we are either over the worst, near the end, or fully over the recession, compared to 66pc in the first quarter.

A more realistic attitude to salaries also emerged from the research, with 64.7pc of Irish workers now more flexible on salaries.

Job security concerns
Irish workers are also apparently becoming a little more secure in their jobs, with the percentage of respondents worried about job security falling from a peak of 75.3pc in the first quarter of 2009 to 52.2pc in the first quarter of 2010 and now 44.4pc in the second quarter.

Workers’ motivations in leaving their job are also changing. Over the past year financial reasons has fallen from 31.4pc to 20.6pc among Irish workers as the reason for leaving their job, while a fear of job security as a reason for leaving has increased from 12.7pc to 17.5pc. Career progression is still the by far the biggest factor in Ireland, however, as in all countries surveyed.

The Berkley survey also revealed the extent of the impact of the Icelandic volcanic ash crisis, which closed down much of European airspace for six days during April. Some 49.9pc of individuals in Ireland felt their companies had been affected by a direct loss of business, delaying of projects or delivery, or were affected but could make up the loss over time.