Depending on what statistic you read, anywhere between four and 17 per cent of migrants who came to Ireland in search of work after the Accession States joined the EU in May, 2004, have left the country in the past year.
On 13 and 14 June, FAS hosted a ‘European Construction Jobs Fair’ at its offices in D’Olier Street, Dublin. In attendance were employment advisers from Government agencies in the United Kingdom, Poland, Belgium, Netherlands, Sweden, Slovakia, Norway and Denmark, each advising construction workers on the numerous employment and career development options available within the construction sector throughout Europe.
There were also two recruitment agencies in attendance offering construction jobs in the UK, construction jobs in Netherlands and construction jobs in Poland to name a few places.
Competition to attract construction recruits was great with a number of stands offering flights and accommodation to the right job candidate.
A representative on the Polish stand told constructionjobs.ie that they expect to see a marked increase in construction activity in Poland next year when work begins on stadia for the European Championships 2012. This they say will kick start a construction boom in the country, which will result in huge investment in the development of road and rail infrastructure, hotel construction and residential development.
An advisor from the Scottish jobs agency said there were considerable construction job opportunities in residential development in Aberdeen – a vital support to the North Sea oil industry. She said there were also huge construction job opportunities in Edinburgh, particularly with the ongoing development of the new Edinburgh tramway system on track (Excuse the pun).
The FAS offices in which the event was held were packed to capacity with majority of stands targeting tradesmen and skilled labour. But there was also big demand for engineers. I will be publishing updates on opportunities in individual countries over the coming weeks.
