Construction job opportunities in Poland

Poland population : 38.7 million approx.

For those considering a move to Poland, 2009 is expected to be a year when the fortunes of the construction industry continue to improve. With the Euro 2012 soccer championship on the horizon Poland says it can provide the extra stadia required should Ukraine be unable to meet their development deadlines. However building soccer stadia is not all that the construction industry in Poland is about.

In Poland construction companies expect a number of large-scale investment to begin in earnest by the end of this year or the beginning of 2009.
At the moment the key area of investment in Poland is road building and other associated civils works.

In 2008 the Polish construction industry has been experiencing a high level of development activity. However the figures for this year are down slightly on the figures for the same period last year.

From a recruitment perspective there is particular demand for a range of construction professionals, trades and experienced construction workers.

The most sought after construction personnel are

• Civil engineers
• Joiners
• Construction and maintenance road labourers
• Bricklayers,
• Stonemasons,
• Concrete placers,
• Concrete finishers and related workers
• Welders and flame cutters

Any EU citizen may reside in Poland for up to three months without registering. If an EU citizen remains in the territory for more than three months they are required register their residence.

Working hours in Poland cannot exceed eight hours per day and average 40 hours in a five day week. During a calendar year an employee may work a maximum of 150 overtime hours.

Mozliwosci pracy w sektorze budowlanym w Polsce.

Liczba ludnosci: 38.7 mln

Dla tych, ktorzy zamierzaja wyjechac do Polski- rok 2009 moze okazac sie usmiechem losu, gdyz oczekiwany jest tam dalszy rozwoj przemyslu budowlanego.
W zwiazku z organizacja Mistrzostw Europy w pilce noznej w 2012 roku, Polska bedzie w stanie zapewnic dodatkowe stadiony gdyby Ukraina nie zdazy_a z przygotowaniami na swoim terenie. Jednak rozwoj budownictwa w Polsce to nie tylko budowa obiektow sportowych zwiazanych z Mistrzostwami Europy.
Firmy budowlane spodziewaja sie licznych inwestycji na duza skale juz w tym lub na poczatku przyszlego roku. W chwili obecnej kluczowa role odgrywaja budowa drog oraz inne inwestycje publiczne.
W roku 2008 polskie budownictwo odnotowa_o spory rozwoj, jednak wskazniki z tego roku sa minimalne nizsze niz z odpowiadajacego okresu w roku ubieglym.

Z punktu widzenia zatrudnienia, szczegolnie poszukiwani sa specjalisci i robotnicy budowlani. Na zatrudnienie liczyc moga glownie:
Inzynierowie budownictwa
Stolarze
Pracownicy budowy i utrzymania drog
Murarze
Kamieniarze
Betoniarze
Tynkarze
Spawacze

Kazdy obywatel Unii Europejskiej moze przebywac na terenie Polski do trzech miesiecy bez obowiazku rejestracyjnego. Przekroczenie tego okresu wymaga zgloszenia pobytu.

W Polsce obowiazuje 8- godzinny dzien pracy, srednio 40 godzin w 5- dniowym tygodniu pracy. W ciagu roku kalendarzowego pracownik moze przepracowac maksymalnie 150 godzin nadliczbowych.

Belgium: Construction trade and skilled labour jobs

The Lotto Sports Arena, Antwerp, a 7,500 capacity sport and concert venue built in 2007




Ageing workforce presents recruitment challenge

Belgium is divided in to three regions:

The Dutch speaking region of Flanders or Flemish region in the north;

The French speaking southern region of Wallonia in the south and;

Brussels, the capital region, in the centre, which is predominantly French speaking

Unemployment rates vary considerably between the regions. Brussels was 19% at the end of May, 2007, Wallonia 13% and Flanders only 5.6%. Flanders accounts for about 60 % of the Belgian economy and 60 per cent of the Belgian construction industry.

Employment challenge
Due to an ageing population, particularly in Flanders, a major challenge for the Flemish construction sector is that of replacing workforce. 46% of the construction workforce is now 40 years and older.
Nationally the Belgian construction industry needs an annual skilled workforce intake of about 17,000 new workers to replace those who leave each year. In the next few years, this will increase as a larger number move towards retirement than ever was the case in the past.

Bottleneck vacancies
VDAB is the Flanders public employment service, and each year it compiles a list of ‘Bottleneck’ vacancies. Bottleneck vacancies take longer to fill than average. Because of serious skills shortages pretty much every vacancies in the Belgian construction industry is considered such.
At the moment from a trades perspective in terms of Bottleneck vacancies carpentry and furniture making are the hardest posts to fill. This is followed by stonemasons and finally maintenance people.

Top 10 Most Difficult Belgian Construction Vacancies to Fill

• 1. Carpenters/furniture makers (2,456)
• 2.Masons (1,566)
• 3.Building maintenance people (1,040)
  
• 4.Painters/interior decorators (822)
  
• 5. Roofers (789)
  
• 6. Plasterers (586)
  
• 7. Civil engineers (485)
  
• 8. Industrial painters (416)
  
• 9. Pavers (411)
  
• 10. Formworkers (410)

A few shortages are of a qualitative nature and due to a lack of competences or specific technical skills. This is particularly so in the case of building maintenance personnel, painters and formworkers. But the main reason for most Bottleneck vacancies is a shortage of candidates. There are just too few candidates available on the Belgian labour market.


Belgian Construction Outlook
Over the past two years Belgium has experienced a small decrease in activity in the residential construction market, particularly in Flanders. Non residential building activities have taken over as the motor of the construction industry in Belgium.
Key areas of development include the construction of new industrial sites, logistic and commercial centres, offices and hospitals. It is anticipated that this will continue for some time.

Over the coming years the Belgian government will undertake a number of ambitious investment programmes which will result in the construction of new schools, infrastructure and social housing. The majority of this construction work will be carried out in the Flanders region.

Sources: VDAB (Flemish Public Employment Service), Belgian Confederation of Construction Enterprises, EURES (EU job mobility association),

Minister’s Gaffe increases pressure on Irish Government to deliver NDP

CIF Director General, Tom Parlon chats to Irish Environment Minister John Gormley and CIF President, Hank Fogarty at the FIEC conference in Dublin Castle


Judging by the commentary in newspapers over the weekend Stephen Staunton can relax, as there is a new ‘Gaffer’ in town. Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan’s somewhat undiplomatic proclamation that the Irish economy has come to a “shuddering stop” was greeted with unease by the delegates gathered for the FIEC European Construction Conference held in Dublin last weekend.

Addressing the conference in Dublin Castle, Construction Industry Federation (CIF) president Hank Fogarty argued that reducing infrastructure spending would be a very negative reaction. He said: “Across Europe the best solution has been to invest in infrastructure and planning to ensure future economic success.”

There is growing pressure on the Irish Government to deliver creative solutions in maintaining momentum on the €184bn National Development Plan (NDP) as opposed slamming the till shut. With the levels of employment in the Irish Construction industry still very high, it will be difficult to re-establish some level of momentum once overall market conditions improve if cutbacks in spending is the only solution the Government can present.

Hank Fogarty also challenged the Irish and other European governments to lead by example in the drive to reduce carbon emissions in the built environment.

He said: “There are a range of issues that should be used by the government to help bring about more reductions in our energy consumption. The most recent report from Sustainable Energy Ireland added to the record price for crude oil, should serve as a wake up call to all sectors of the economy with regard to tackling climate change. With the introduction of new building energy regulations from 1 July, which set out improvements in energy efficiencies of new residential buildings, there is an ideal opportunity for the Government to lead by example in the battle on energy usage. The Government, through Local Authorities, State Agencies and Government Departments has the largest property folio in the country and there is a ready-made opportunity for them to lead by example with regard to energy saving initiatives. By spearheading a programme aimed at the stock of exiting buildings the Government can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve our environment in the most efficient and cost effective way possible.”

Also speaking at the conference CIF director general Tom Parlon said that house building needed to return to a sustainable level of about 50,000 new homes a year saying “house building is a big contributor to the exchequer and these revenues would dry up if the industry stalls.” He said that trick was to get to a sustainable level of production that will keep people employed.

International recruiters compete for construction workers in Dublin

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.

Job opportunities in Education roll-out

One building sub sector that struggled to keep up during the property boom of the past few years was the Education. Listening to Ministerial announcements you might have believed that year on year there was a massive roll out of new schools. But disproportionate fund allocation, poorly planned infrastructure in Rapid Population Growth areas and inflated land prices combined to hinder those charged with delivering schools in achieving their goals.
With the slowdown in Irish residential output this year and probably next year, the Department of Education and Science (DES) Planning and Building Unit has been afforded the opportunity to catch up.

In 2008 €600m of Exchequer funding will be spent on school development, with 200 projects ranging from new school buildings to roof repairs planned for completion before year's end. Another 350 projects are scheduled to start between now and early next year. The works will be carried out primarily in the Eastern Region of Ireland (Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Wicklow and Louth) in areas of Rapid Population Growth, where it will take at least two to three years to meet the school requirements for the current level of new housing stock. Parts of Cork, Galway and Limerick have also been highlighted as areas that will experience large-scale Education infrastructure development in the next 18 months.

In 2005 the Irish Government announced a plan to provide 23 new post-primary schools and four primary schools as bundle projects through Public Private Partnership from 2006 to 2009. Plans are now at an advanced stage on three of these bundles. The first – a bundle of four schools (Two in Laois, two in Offaly) – will be built by the Macquarie Partnership for Ireland (MPFI), a consortium that includes Pierse Contracting. Work is expected to start on these in early summer. Another scheme is scheduled to begin later this year with the other penciled in for early 2009. Further projects are planned for 2009.

From a construction jobs perspective, this is all good news. School building presents an opportunity for those looking to migrate from residential development to a sector that requires similar skills.

The DES Planning and Building Unit says that the slowdown in housing has had the effect of making tenders and land prices more cost effective. In this scenario, once funding can be maintained, Education roll out should provide sustainable construction job opportunities for a wide variety of construction trades people and construction professionals in the coming years.

Public Contracts Opportunity

In a radio report last week one Irish union representative suggested the Government should bring forward more public contracts in the National Development Plan (NDP) in an effort to replace job losses in the housing sector, even if this means borrowing heavily.
However with the Irish civil engineering sector performing so well in recent times, the Government should be looking at the feasibility of bringing forward more NDP projects to take full advantage of the unprecedented output abilities of Irish civil engineers at this point in time.

Because of the huge housing output of the past few years, infrastructure such as schools, healthcare and water treatment are now playing catch up. While there will be many construction job opportunities in these areas in the coming years a golden opportunity is being lost at the moment because projects aren't coming through the system quickly enough.

The Irish Government stumbled earlier this year when it announced that there would be delays in getting a number of high profile Transport 21 Plan projects to site. Coincidently, there is a Transport 21 billboard campaign running at the moment, which highlights the Irish Government's €34bn investment in road and rail infrastructure as part of the €184bn budgeted National Development Plan 2007 - 2013.

While there is no shortage of activity in the civils sector, when you consider the productivity of those in civils jobs over the past two years you would have to say never before have Irish civil engineering firms been better placed to handle more work. They regularly deliver major roads projects below budget and ahead of schedule and many in the sector believe there is capacity for even greater output.

Last year, former CECA (Civil Engineering Contractors Association) president John Craddock said that while he was delighted with the success of the sector to date, he believed that Irish civil engineering contractors and their construction teams were capable of handling even more projects. It is just a matter of those projects coming on line.

So maybe it is time to revisit the NDP roll out schedule before the opportunity is lost.

Record PPP starts in 2008 can deliver construction jobs boost

So it's bye bye, Bertie, hello, Brian! It can be a daunting task to understand Minister speak in any country. In Ireland one strategically placed, or misplaced, phrase can have a myriad of meanings. And Bertie was a master of the political soundbyte, in many instances more by accident than intention. Over the years of the many quotes that baffled the nation, one that he will never be let forget was his 2004 comment on conspiracies, “There are kebabs plotting against us”.

But now it is time to close the Bertie speak book and open a new one for Taoiseach in waiting, Brian Cowen, who famously referred to the Department of Health as “Angola” during his tenure there. Known for not holding back, we can expect the Offaly TD to at least entertain during his jousts with opposition leaders.

With recent falling Exchequer income in Ireland Irish ministers have been going to great lengths to carefully phrase the Government’s commitment to the National Development Plan 2007 – 2013 (NDP). Transport Minister Noel Dempsey said if there are to be cutbacks the NDP will the last area to suffer. If this is the case the NDP will be a major source of construction jobs over the next five years, with infrastructure roll out and public contracts being the backbone of the Irish construction industry.

One method that has been very effective in delivering timely public works is the Public Private Partnership Programme (PPP). PPPs are schemes where the private sector takes responsibility for the design, construction, financing and operation of an asset for a set period of time. The private sector is typically not paid until the asset is operational and performing to the contracted standard.

Since 2003 in Ireland a total of 73 PPP projects have been completed, started or are in planning. Projects operating under the PPP mechanic include roads, rail, schools, health, prisons, wastewater management and social housing.

Of the 73 projects in the system, to date 13 have been completed and as of March 08 of the remaining 67 projects, 14 are currently under construction.

If all goes to plan, according to the latest report (March 2008) from the Irish Government’s Central PPP Policy Unit (www.ppp.gov.ie), 2008 will be a record year for PPP schemes getting off the ground. It is planned that a large majority of the remaining projects will go to tender or start on site. The goal is to start construction on a record 28 schemes before the end of the year. A further eight projects are scheduled to go to construction during 2009. Because of the scale of these projects – many of the planned projects having indicative values of €250m plus – it can be expected that demand for construction professionals in Ireland will continue to be strong over the coming 18months.

Of the 28 schemes scheduled to go on site this year, projects of interest include a bundle of three new motorway service areas (Indicative value €50m - €€100) and a bundle of three decentalized Government offices in Portlaise, Mullingar and Carlow (Indicative value €100– €250m).

In the summer the relocation of Mountjoy Prison to Thornton Hall in North Dublin is expected to get under way. The contract was awarded to a consortium that includes Michael McNamara & Co and Barclays Bank. It has an indicative value of €250m plus.

The majority of project starts planned for this year will be carried out under the Department of Environment, Housing and Local Government (DEHLG). Projects ranging from housing to waste and wastewater management are scheduled to begin construction. These include the controversial Dublin Waste to Energy scheme (Indicative value €100 – €250m), scheduled for a summer start. Indicative values on DEHLG projects start at about €10m and rise to €250m for a number of the social housing projects.

So on the basis of the Government’s PPP ambitions for this year and with a further eight projects to go on site next year, several billion euros will be pumped into the Irish economy over the coming years through PPP, with completion dates spreading from 2009 to 2013.

Construction starts on €70m Meath Retail Park

Blackrock International Land and Lagan Developments have announced that work is to begin on their joint venture Navan retail park scheme, close to Dublin, with Sisk taking on contracting responsibilities.

The Navan retail park will comprise a 160,000-sq ft retail centre and park on a 28.8-acre site on the outskirts of the growing County Meath town.

The development value of the project is estimated to be in excess of €70m, and its location on the Athboy Road will take advantage of the nearby M3 motorway, which is currently under construction. The joint venture team plans to develop an additional eight acres on the site at a later date.

The development is a good sign for Irish commercial construction sector in 2008, where it is expected that recruitment activity will be healthy in the coming months as tradespeople, skilled labour and construction professionals migrate from the slowing housing sector.

The Navan retail park is the first of a number of large mixed-use and commercial developments planned for construction across Ireland over the coming months.

500 Construction Jobs Drogheda, Ireland

There is a total of 500 Irish construction jobs that will created in Drogheda, Drogheda is situation just 30kms outside Dublin, next year when work starts on a €200m mixed-use development.

For more information click Construction jobs Ireland

Davy's Construction Jobs Warning -But Ireland still to be one of the Top EU Economies

In a report on the Irish economy, Davy Stockbrokers says that 35,000 jobs will be lost in the construction sector by the end of 2008. However, it also says the losses will be offset by 15,000 new jobs in building of infrastructure and commercial property developments and it predicts economic growth will remain strong.Davy Stockbrokers reiterated the belief that the housing sector is on the brink of an adjustment, with the number of housing completions likely to fall in the second half of the year. The report says that the number of completions will fall off by 17 per cent in the second half of 2007. But it stressed that a forecast of 80,000 house completions for this year and 65,000 next year is still a soft landing.

Although there will be some redeployment of labour to other parts of the construction industry, it is "inevitable" that there will be job losses, Davy economist Robbie Kelleher said.The numbers of workers employed in housing will fall from around 185,000 to 150,000 by the end of 2008, he said. However, this will be partially offset by increased activity in other sectors of the construction industry, where Davy estimates an additional 17,000 people will be employed over the same period.That would leave a net job loss of around 17,000, or six per cent, between now and the end of 2008.

For more information please select Jobs Warning

Davy's Construction Jobs Warning -But Ireland still to be one of the Top EU Economies

In a report on the Irish economy, Davy Stockbrokers says that 35,000 jobs will be lost in the construction sector by the end of 2008. However, it also says the losses will be offset by 15,000 new jobs in building of infrastructure and commercial property developments and it predicts economic growth will remain strong.Davy Stockbrokers reiterated the belief that the housing sector is on the brink of an adjustment, with the number of housing completions likely to fall in the second half of the year. The report says that the number of completions will fall off by 17 per cent in the second half of 2007. But it stressed that a forecast of 80,000 house completions for this year and 65,000 next year is still a soft landing.
Although there will be some redeployment of labour to other parts of the construction industry, it is "inevitable" that there will be job losses, Davy economist Robbie Kelleher said.The numbers of workers employed in housing will fall from around 185,000 to 150,000 by the end of 2008, he said. However, this will be partially offset by increased activity in other sectors of the construction industry, where Davy estimates an additional 17,000 people will be employed over the same period.That would leave a net job loss of around 17,000, or six per cent, between now and the end of 2008.
With around 13 per cent of the construction workforce made up of foreign nationals, who are considered more mobile than other construction workers, a portion of this group may relocate to Britain.Increased levels of public sector construction under the National Development Plan, a buoyant commercial sector and a surge in home improvement will help counterbalance the downturn in housing, they say. As liquidity and affordability in the second-hand house market deteriorate, there is likely to be increased spending on home improvement, particularly given the financial resources available from SSIA accounts.The commercial, infrastructure and home improvement sectors account for up to 40 per cent of construction investment. However, Davy expects that employment in the construction sector as a whole will be falling at a year-on-year rate of six per cent by the end of 2008.Overall job creation in the economy is likely to slow to one per cent by the end of 2008, which is the equivalent of 20,000 jobs. This is down from a figure of 80,000 in the 12-month period to the end of February 2007. The February figures from the CSO showed an increase of over 28,300 new employees joining the construction industry in the previous 12 months.
The stockbroker’s report concluded by saying there are increasing signs that export growth will be stronger in the future than it has been in recent years. Davy sees GNP growing by 4.5 per cent this year and three per cent next year. Employment growth is likely to slow to one per cent by the end of 2008.

Northern Ireland Business Outlook Positive But Skills Shortages Need Addressing

The majority of businesses in Northern Ireland are optimistic about the future of the economy, according to an Ulster Bank survey.In its first all-island survey the bank finds that, in the north, 63 per cent of companies say their business prospects will improve.Half of companies in the Republic of Ireland say their business prospects will improve, while just under a third believe they will stand still.However in a report to the Northern Ireland Assembly business leaders said shortages of skilled workers in key areas will be a major factor holding back growth in the North's economy.The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) went before the North’s Employment and Learning Committee to stress the need for swift action rather than more consultations or strategies.They warned that training the right number of people in the right skills was needed if the North was to achieve the economic advance that the restoration of devolution provided it with.CBI projects there will be a need for 140,000 people to fill jobs during the next 10 years.

10 per cent of Irish Business Start Ups by Migrants

Ten per cent of new businesses in Ireland are begun by new arrivals to the country, according to the Bank of Ireland.In a new report the bank says that the most popular sectors for such start-ups are restaurants and food-related businesses, construction, consultancy and retail enterprises.They also said that 17 per cent of foreign nationals surveyed planned to start their own business in Ireland over the next five years.In response to this, BoI has launched a new business-banking proposition for Polish customers, which they say is the first initiative of its kind in Ireland.Damian Young, the banks head of small business says: “Latest projections show that the foreign national population could grow to 19 per cent by 2020. We have recognised the changing needs of our customer base and this is the first in a range of SME initiatives due to be launched to foreign nationals by Bank of Ireland.”Over the last six months, the bank has carried out research on foreign national customer needs and found that access to translated information and a lack of understanding of Irish banking terminology were the main concerns articulated.

Annual Irish Employment Growth Moderates in Q1 2007

The Irish Central Statistic Office (CSO) has reported in its Quarterly National Household Survey Quarter 1 2007 that the number of persons in employment in Ireland grew by 76,800 or 3.8 per cent in the year to 2,074,900 in the first quarter of 2007. This compares to an annual growth rate of 4.3 per cent in the previous quarter and to a rate of 4.7 per cent in the same quarter last year.The number of men in employment in Ireland increased over the year by 38,100 (up 3.3 per cent) while the number of females increased by 38,700 (up 4.6 per cent).When seasonal factors are taken into account the number of persons in employment increased by 16,400 in the quarter compared with an average quarterly adjusted increase of 21,400 in 2006.There were 91,800 persons unemployed in Ireland in the first quarter of 2007, representing an increase of 3,600 over the year. The increase of 3,300 in the numbers of unemployed males accounted for over 90 per cent of the overall annual increase. The number of persons in short-term unemployment increased by 3,800, which was partially offset by a small decrease of 200 in the number of persons in long-term unemployment. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased from 4.1 per cent to 4.4 per cent between the fourth quarter of 2006 and the first quarter of 2007.The total number of persons in the Irish labour force now stands at 2,166,700, an increase of 80,400 or 3.9 per cent over the year. This accounts for 62.9 per cent of all persons aged 15 and over compared with 62.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2006. Female participation rose from 52.2 per cent to 53.2 per cent while that for males increased from 72.5 per cent to 72.8 per cent.Non-Irish national workers are tentatively estimated to have accounted for around 45,000 or almost 60 per cent of the annual increase in the numbers in employment. The number of unemployed foreign nationals increased by 1,200 over the year to 14,900 representing just under one sixth of the total number of unemployed persons in the first quarter.The latest available figures for all EU 25 member states, which are for the fourth quarter of 2006, show that between the fourth quarters of 2005 and 2006 Ireland’s employment level grew by 4.3 per cent and its labour force by 4.0 per cent. The comparable figures for the EU-25 countries were 2.1 per cent and one per cent respectively.

Migration Still Driving Irish Labour Force Growth

According to the Irish Central Statistics Office demographic factors, such as the increase in the population of working age and changes in its age structure, added an estimated 63,000 to the labour force over the year. Net inward migration is estimated to have accounted for almost 75 per cent of this demographic increase. The demographic factor was particularly evident in the case of the 25-34 age group – the age group most affected by net inward migration – where a rise in the labour force of over 31,000 was recorded in the year.
Increased labour force participation accounted for the balance of 17,400 in the annual labour force growth. All age groups with the exception of those aged 25-34, which remained static, recorded increases in participation rates, while female participation rates in particular continued to rise sharply.
In the first quarter of 2007 foreign nationals accounted for almost 30 per cent of workers in the Irish hotels and restaurants sector, 13.5 per cent of Construction workers and 13.4 per cent of those employed in the Other Production Industries Sector.
There was an increase of 11,500 in the number of foreign workers in the Construction Sector, the largest increase across all sectors, while strong growth was also recorded in the Other Production industries (plus 9,600), Hotels and Restaurants (plus 9,100) and Wholesale and Retail Trade (plus 7,000) sectors.

Survey: Majority of senior UK bosses say a fixed target for annual staff dismissal is healthy

A survey by Hudson Recruitment in the UK found that British business chiefs want to dismiss an annual quota of underperforming staff, but fear doing so in the current employment market. The findings reveal that 61 per cent of senior UK bosses believe that a fixed target for annual staff dismissal is healthy.

Low-performance, low-potential employees are said to make up one tenth of a company’s workforce. Although shedding staff in a climate where companies are desperate to find talent is counterintuitive, nevertheless, retaining for the sake of retaining damages both the long-term health of a company and the career progression of the individual.

British business leaders acknowledged that there were distinct advantages to deliberately releasing average or below-average performers. Ensuring strong team members do not carry weaker ones was cited as the main advantage (60 per cent) of deliberately releasing average or below average performers. Allowing underperforming staff to pursue a fresh challenge more suited to their abilities (50 per cent), bottom-line improvement (36 per cent), ensuring that training is spent on those that will really benefit (35 per cent) and increasing productivity (33 per cent) also rated highly. But the risks inherent to this strategy were highlighted by the 75 per cent of respondents who cited ‘introducing a culture of fear’ as a deterrent to a dismissal quota. 61 per cent felt pursuing such a dismissal policy would lower morale within the workplace. In general, women seem to feel more strongly about the disadvantages than men. Women are almost 10 per cent more likely to think that deliberately releasing staff lowers morale (68 per cent vs 59 per cent) and just over 10 per cent are more likely to think that it decreases the motivation of the workforce (48 per cent vs 37 per cent).

Hudson’s research, the first of its kind to examine the business taboo of ‘culling’ within the context of business performance, highlights that the majority of UK bosses see the financial benefits of dismissing underperforming employees and admit that the advantages of such a dismissal policy clearly outweigh the disadvantages. Retaining for the sake of retaining will not help solve either the UK’s skills crisis or its increasing productivity gap. In addition, this retention is not good for a company’s long-term health or the career progression of the individual. However, legitimate concerns remain about both the implications of a dismissal target and the extent to which simply having hands on deck - regardless of the ability of those hands – is, in the current climate, better than having insufficient resources.

Irish Planning Institute highlights urgent need for professional planners

Dublin City Council is the only local authority in Ireland to have a post staffed at the highest planning officer grade, that of planning officer, according to a new survey carried out by the Irish Planning Institute. It also reports that counties such as Carlow, Kerry and Waterford are among local authorities that do not have the services of a senior planner.
The survey indicates that 600 professional planners were working in local authorities in the Republic in 2006. But it indicated that just 150 of these were working in what was described as “forward planning” and just 30 planners were employed on enforcement issues.

The Institute says enforcement was the most frustrating aspect of planning for the public. It also says there was an urgent need for more professional planners to cope with economic development, population growth and environmental challenges.

In many cases the survey found that the senior officers in planning departments were not planners but engineers or other professional grade staff.

Dublin City Council was the only local authority to have a post staffed at the highest planning officer grade, that of planning officer. The council had one planning officer. The survey also found that the only Government department to employ planners was Environment. The Institute called for planners to be employed in Transport, Tourism, Enterprise, and Education.

28,300 new jobs created in Irish Construction

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has released figures that show continued growth of employment in the construction sector in Ireland. With an increase of over 28,300 new employees joining the industry in the past 12 months, the figures clearly demonstrate Irish economy’s reliance on the construction industry.

Construction Industry Federation (CIF) spokesperson Peter Stafford welcomed the figures saying: “These figures from the CSO demonstrate the continued growth of the construction sector in Ireland and the vibrancy of the industry. The CIF is confident in the future of the construction industry and the continued growth in employment demonstrates clearly the capacity of the industry to meet the needs of the economy.”
Throughout the past 12 months a total of over 28,300 new jobs were created in the construction industry and these new jobs are spread right throughout the country across all regions, bringing the total number of people working in construction to over 282,100, which is over an 11.2 per cent increase in the year to the first quarter of 2007.

The number of Irish nationals as a percentage of all workers in the industry stands at over 87 per cent and of the 28,300 new jobs in construction in the past 12 months, 16,800 were taken up by Irish nationals and 11,500 jobs went to workers from outside Ireland

Irish Government allocates €1bn to social housing for 2007

Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, Noel Ahern TD, has announced that €1.013bn will be allocated go towards the provision of local authority housing in 2007.
He said the allocation of over E1bn for the provision of local authority housing provides for work in progress on over 8,300 housing units and for authorities to complete construction and acquire 5,500 houses this year including new dwellings completed under regeneration projects.
Minister Ahern said the funding was the highest ever allocated for the main local authority housing construction and acquisition programme.
" I would anticipate that some 7,000 housing units should be started or acquired by local authorities in 2007 including new units provided in regeneration projects," he said.

Rogue employment agencies to be tackled

The Irish Government is to clamp down on rogue employment agencies supplying labour to workplaces around the country.
Under the proposed legislation all employment agencies would need a licence and have to follow a new code of practice. Compliance with the code would be a condition of securing and retaining the licence.
The new legislation would oblige agencies to pay workers the national minimum wage or rates set out in negotiated employment agreements for particular sectors.
It is thought that the legislation would also ensure that each employee must have an identifiable employer within the State who would be legally responsibility for compliance with all aspects of employment legislation. The new legislation will also define an agency and an employee.
In 2006, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Micheál Martin TD, criticised sub-contractors and agents who were paying staff considerably less than the rate of pay set out in registered employment agreements for particular sectors.
There are now 520 employment agencies operating in Ireland. The new legislation follows on from a commitment in the National Partnership Agreement, Towards 2016. The legislation is expected to be brought to Cabinet within the coming weeks.