The Northern Ireland jobs market has been revitalised by easing movement restrictions, the Covid-19 vaccination programme and the reopening of hospitality, according a new report.
The NI Jobs Report with Ulster Bank found a rush of demand for staff has created a competitive recruitment market, particularly in hospitality, retail and the wholesale sectors and beauty and haircare, all of which have been revitalised in recent weeks after being allowed to open up again.
It said there have been more jobs advertised on the site in the first six months of the year than the whole of last year.
Sam McIlveen, NIJobs.com General Manager, said the hospitality sector in particular is struggling to fill vacancies.
“Hospitality’s importance to the NI economy cannot be understated,” he said. “Our data reveals that job postings in hospitality surged as bars, restaurants and hotels across NI opened their doors, increasing elevenfold compared to the first three months of this year.
“In May, applications for jobs in hospitality increased eightfold compared to the previous year.”
However, while the jobs market appears tight, there is concern the market will loosen significantly once the government’s job retention scheme ends.
At the end of May, there were almost 59,000 people in Northern Ireland on furlough.
“Will these individuals return to their employer?,” Richard Ramsey, Ulster Bank’s Chief Economist said. “Once the scheme is eventually wound down by the autumn we will get a clearer idea of the scale of the mismatch between the supply and demand for labour.”
