According to the latest Hays Salary and Recruiting Trends Guide in Ireland, 81% of employees are looking to change jobs within the next two years.

The report also shows that 47% of all employees are satisfied with their salaries, however 62% expect to receive a pay rise in the next 12 months.

"As economic conditions continue to improve, recruitment is firmly back on the agenda for the vast majority of organisations in Ireland,” Managing Director of Hays Ireland, Richard Eardley said. “Irish employees are becoming increasingly confident about their future prospects and are taking the opportunity to look for new roles."

"Furthermore, increased business confidence, strong economic growth and major job creation announcements in recent months have not gone unnoticed by employees,” Eardley said. “Given all these factors, it is now more important than ever before for employers to focus on retention and development strategies in order to retain their staff in an increasingly competitive market."

The report shows that the Irish labour market is experiencing a period of steady growth. Meanwhile nine out of ten organisations in Ireland say they will be recruiting this year and this intense competition for skilled professionals is likely to change the recruitment and retention strategies in the future.
 
Irish businesses are increasingly optimistic about the future with 79% of organisations expecting increased business activity in 2016 and 86% plan to recruit in the coming 12 months. This is apparent across sectors such as IT, construction, life sciences, financial services and insurance.
 
Salary increases remain relatively modest as a whole, with some notable exceptions in IT, construction and finance. According to the report, 35% of employers said salaries have increased by 2.5% or more in the last 12 months, with 65% stating that salaries have increased by less than 2.5%, remained the same or even decreased.