1st November 2020
IDA Ireland, in partnership with Microsoft and LinkedIn, has developed a new infographic, the ‘Labour Market Pulse’ to inform decision makers in business, academia and in public policy, of the performance of the Irish Labour market. The infographic will also inform individuals who may be considering new opportunities, of the types of roles and skills most in demand.
The labour market has been hugely impacted in the year to date and with the re-imposition of Level 5 restrictions, it’s likely to continue. While the headline figures are known, the initiative is a means of informing policy makers to help them better plan for economic recovery at a time of huge global upheaval in business and in skills demand and availability. It comes off the back of the global skills initiative launched in June by Microsoft to make new digital skills training available to 25 million people by year end through the use of:
- LinkedIn data to identify in-demand jobs and the skills needed to fill them
- Enabling free access to LinkedIn learning tools to help people upskill
- Granting low-cost certifications and free job-seeking tools to help people who acquire the new digital skills to access the jobs market
The first infographic was published today with future updates to be provided quarterly thereafter. The Labour Market Pulse combines LinkedIn’s real-time insights on its two million Irish members and publicly available information from IDA Ireland and the CSO. The launch infographic provides an up to date insight into how the pandemic is impacting employment in Ireland, the most sought after skills in hiring companies, those companies and sectors that have expanded, even at the height of the Covid containment measures, and the extent to which business continuity was supported by remote working at mid-year.
Launching the new Labour Market Pulse, Tánaiste & Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment, Leo Varadkar said: “This new tool, developed by the IDA in collaboration with LinkedIn and Microsoft, will give some important insights into how companies using LinkedIn to recruit are managing during the pandemic, what skills they are looking for and some other emerging trends. 2020 continues to be a really tough year for many people and anything that helps people plan their future is to be welcomed. I look forward to further reports and the insights that they bring. This quarter speaks not only to the importance of Ireland’s multinationals in our economy, but also the thousands of Irish companies that are a key part of their supply chain and services structures.”
IDA CEO Martin Shanahan said: “We are delighted to partner with Microsoft and LinkedIn on this new initiative, which will provide regular, valuable insights into the Irish labour market, and how companies are adapting their talent needs in Ireland at a time of great upheaval. We hope to build on this partnership to bring further insights. Ireland’s talent base is deep, highly skilled and hugely flexible; we anticipate that this data will be useful to many stakeholders as they plan for the future.”
Commenting at the launch, Cathriona Hallahan, Managing Director, Microsoft Ireland said: “With the ongoing public health pandemic impacting people’s livelihoods across a range of sectors, reskilling has become a priority for businesses and Government alike. This is the motivation behind our global skills initiative which seeks to provide skills to 25m people including thousands in Ireland. We are working with LinkedIn and the IDA to use data to identify the in-demand jobs of today and the future, informing the kinds of skills that are most valuable for people to acquire through our skills’ initiative. By bridging the gap between job opportunities and the availability of skills, we believe that the Labour Market Pulse can provide the insights to empower an inclusive and sustainable recovery.”
Sharon McCooey, Head of LinkedIn in Ireland, added: “With over two million members in Ireland, we have a bird’s eye view of what is happening in the labour market. Leveraging these insights gives us the ability to point out what sectors are still hiring despite the downturn and what skills people would need to work in these industries. We realise that we have a part to play in helping people find their next job and that’s why LinkedIn, together with Microsoft, is providing free access to learning and employability tools. There has been a lot of interest from Irish members to learn new skills, whether it is for career development or to pivot to a new role, as we all ultimately work towards bouncing back from this challenging period.”
See infographic here: idaireland.com/newsroom/publications/labour-market-pulse
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