This is a subscriber-only article
There is an abundance of employment opportunities across the agri-food sector, resulting in a competitive market at the moment. According to the Department of Agriculture, in 2021 the sector employed “170,400 people, representing 7.1% of the total workforce across 135,000 farms, 2,000 fishing vessels and aquaculture sites and some 2,000-food production and beverage enterprises.”
Employment within the sector, however, is seeing many challenges due to the high demand for personnel and the limited number of qualified candidates. Recent trends have also seen a large number of senior positions become available. It is essential that companies in the industry remain attractive and competitive in the employment market to continue the growth within the sector.
According to recruiters.ie’s Annual Hiring Trends and Business Outlook Survey 2023, wage inflation was the highest source of inflation affecting Irish-based businesses in 2022 with “79% of business leaders” out of 6,000 surveyed claiming so. Nearly half of employers in this survey also reported a skills shortage.
We are heading into unsettling times with financial pressures looming. Employers are already under pressure to adapt roles, offer competitive salaries and flexible working hours to attract new qualified talent into positions. Hybrid working is overwhelmingly favoured by employees and is being used as a bargaining tool.
The Irish Farmers Journal spoke with a number of leading experts in employment to get a wider understanding of the recruitment market at the moment.
Economist, Indeed Hiring Lab
“The Irish job market remains resilient despite economic headwinds.
“Overall job postings on Indeed in Ireland stand just over 60% above pre-pandemic levels as of early November, close to their peak of 65% in February. With demand for staff remaining elevated, employers across a range of sectors continue to experience challenging hiring conditions.
“With the cost of living rising, it’s unsurprising that higher pay remains top of mind for people considering a new job. The job market has bounced back strongly from the pandemic and high vacancy levels have afforded workers lots of opportunities to switch jobs.
“Meanwhile, some people have reappraised their priorities and what they want from work during the pandemic and have jumped into entirely different careers. Others want greater flexibility, which for jobs that can’t be done remotely generally means increased flexibility over hours and shift patterns.
“Like many sectors of the economy at present, agriculture is experiencing a period of relatively high vacancies. Though it’s a comparatively small category on Indeed, we’ve seen a notable increase in agriculture job posting volumes over recent months.
“Postings stand 150% above pre-pandemic levels, with a range of roles including farm workers, sprayers, milkers, farm managers and ecologists being in demand.
“Around 15% of farm worker jobs are classified as hard-to-fill, meaning they have open vacancies for longer than 60 days.
“With opportunities across the Irish economy still plentiful and many employers raising pay to try and entice workers, agricultural businesses must be mindful of remaining competitive in a tight labour market.”
Recruitment programme manager Teagasc
“There’s no doubt that the Irish agriculture and land-use sector are facing a challenging time ahead with the requirement to reduce GHG emissions by 25%.
“2022 has seen Teagasc focus on recruiting staff with the skills and experience to support the implementation of our Climate Action Strategy.
“We have added to our team of researchers and specialists to enhance and develop new technologies to meet the climate challenge.
“We will continue to fill roles in areas such as climate adaptation, diversification, biodiversity, agri-policy, food, animal and plant science as well as in specialist IT and administration functions.
“This year the company has made greater use of social media platforms to attract a diverse pool of talent which is really important to the company and our commitment to ensuring a culture of diversity, gender equality and inclusion.
“Hybrid ways of working are continuing post-pandemic. Teagasc has recently launched a pilot home working policy.
“There are fantastic career opportunities across the agri-food industry at the moment. We are doing our bit to secure a more sustainable future for everyone and encourage anyone who is interested in advancing the climate action agenda to consider joining our team.”
Agri recruitment manager, FRS
“There are more work opportunities and job positions than candidates available. This is a positive sign as it shows the large availability of employment within the sector.
“The same volume of jobs is there, but unfortunately there are not enough people looking for work. This is down to people watching social and economic news and are cautious about moving [jobs].
“There is a fear that there could be a recession or level of instability coming so people are generally staying in positions and asking for increases in pay.
“[The] ag industry is very tangible, employers like staff to be in the office, the problem now is the work-life balance and working from home is hindering people from moving in jobs.
“Employers will have to be more flexible with working from home as it’s a big thing for a lot of people.
“It has become an employee’s market; they can nearly demand what salaries and benefits they are looking for before they go for interview.
“The marketplace is cautious at the moment. Employers are trying to retain staff through counter offers, as it is hard to get staff. Employees have the power.
“What we are finding is, it’s a very small sector. People can be afraid to move.
“Recruitment is very seasonal – you see movement in January, February, March, April, June, September, October and November.”
SHARING OPTIONS: