Companies in the West 'struggling to fill well-paid jobs'
Companies in the West of Ireland are struggling to fill well-paid engineering roles, according to a new survey.
Some companies surveyed have been waiting for more than a year to fill senior roles as a result of a talent shortage in the West, according to the survey by Matrix Recruitment.
The survey of more than 30 companies saw employers across Galway, Mayo and Sligo reporting skill shortages.
More than 35 posts are currently lying vacant among the cross section of organisations surveyed, mostly in the med-tech / pharma / food manufacturing sectors, almost half of which are senior engineering roles.
More than half of those surveyed cited senior engineer or specialist level roles as the most difficult to fill.
While 45% of those surveyed by Matrix cited a lack of experienced candidates as the reason why the posts remain unfilled, almost 30% said a lack of mobility was also proving to be a serious impediment to attracting top talent to the West.
Engineers seem resistant to leaving the more populated cities of Dublin and Cork to take up positions in the West of Ireland.
Michelle Hand, branch manager of Matrix Rectruiment Galway said Ireland was lacking the depth of talent needed to back up the recovery.
“Galway, Sligo and Mayo are quickly becoming hubs for medical device and FMCG companies,” she said.
“A high number of major multinational brands have been attracted to Galway in recent years which in turn has attracted a very high calibre of engineers to the West.
“However, as our survey demonstrates a lack of skilled candidates and a resistance to relocating from the more populated urban centres is still presenting itself as a major issue.
“Employers here continue to be frustrated by the conundrum of an over-supply of available workers and an under supply of qualified talent.
“What we hear from the companies we talk to is that there are an increasing number of opportunities in senior engineering roles but employers are having difficulty finding people with the right level of experience, specific industry knowledge or other skills needed.
“A lack of skilled graduates is certainly a problem but often the issue is companies are looking for someone who fits every criteria.
“They often don't see value in bringing in someone who only has 80% of the skills they need, this could be jeopardising growth in the med-tech and other manufacturing areas.”
The findings demonstrate how more than 75% of vacant jobs were advertised more than three months ago, while almost 25% have remained vacant for 12 months or more due to a lack of skilled graduates.
Employers said a shortfall in knowledge was a big issue among new recruits with almost 60% of companies citing this as the number of one shortcoming among new employees.
Among employers who reported difficulties filling positions, 33% cited a lack of “hard” or technical skills as the reason why they cannot find the right talent, with 8.3% citing a lack of soft skills while 59% of employers said candidates lacked knowledge of business/academic disciplines/industry or formal qualifications.
