NEW RESEARCH FROM one of Ireland’s top recruitment firms has shown a three-fold increase in jobs available in the property and construction sector.

Quantity surveyors, project managers, site engineers and property managers have been most sought after in recent months.

It follows on from data contained in Ulster Bank’s construction purchasing manager’s index (PMI) which showed a pick up in activity in the sector.

Statistics released last month by the Central Statistics Office also showed that annual wage inflation in the construction sector was out-stripping other professions, up by 10.2% in the year to the end of April.

The average weekly wage for someone in the construction sector is now €704.41.

Low base

Hays director of construction and property Mike McDonagh said that it is “encouraging to see positive signs of growth within construction and property.”

The sector has taken a battering in recent years and while we are starting from a lot base, the need for construction professionals is again growing.

He said that the majority of construction projects are in the commercial sector, particularly Nama-controlled projects that are now being finished out.

In the context of sluggish levels of house building when compared to commercial construction, he said that a “slight increase in activity on the residential side” was now detectable.

He added:

“Property jobs are also on the increase. The need for further commercial property, particularly in Dublin, has seen an increased need for surveyors, general practice surveyors, property managers and letting agents.”

However, these professionals remain scarce on the ground, so are in strong demand.

Read: Irish construction output is on the way up, but house building is on the way down>

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