NI Job Market Normalises but Great Resignation 2.0 Risk Emerges
31st Jan 2025
Employers may face new recruitment challenges as pressures mount in a highly competitive job market, according to the latest Job Report from NIJobs.
Recruitment difficulties are now commonplace for businesses but rising employer costs, which are likely to exacerbate employee dissatisfaction, could trigger another wave of resignations in 2025.
The NIJobs Job Report, authored by leading economist Richard Ramsey, examines hiring trends and the most in-demand jobs alongside the current economic backdrop.
Richard says; “Whilst many people are grappling with what Trump 2.0 will mean for economies, sectors, and businesses, some quarters within the recruitment world are suggesting we could see a sequel to The Great Resignation. Triggers of this include return-to-work orders following the pandemic-induced rollout of working from home.”
Major global companies such as Amazon, AT&T, and JP Morgan have all recently declared remote working obsolete for their employees. In Northern Ireland, similar trends are emerging, with local employers encouraging staff to spend more time in the office.
The latest NIJobs figures reveal that the proportion of job listings specifying fully remote work is 31% lower than the same period last year. However, ‘hybrid working’ is holding steady. In Q4 2024, almost 11% of all job vacancies were hybrid roles. This was more than twice the number of positions advertised as ‘Remote’ (4.6%) and compares with 1 in 500 jobs (0.2%) in Q4 2019.
Richard continues; “Talk of a Great Resignation in 2025 presents a major challenge for employers to retain existing talent, let alone recruit new staff. Employers and employees are now under more cost pressures. Cost pressures for employees rather than a desire for a career/lifestyle change have increasingly come to the fore. The change in the economic environment could also see employers become more cost-conscious and less willing or able to continue with certain benefits and above-inflation pay rises. According to the Wall Street Journal, Netflix has reportedly been ‘walking back’ its policy on unlimited time off for new parents. Housing costs, in particular, could force employees to look elsewhere to get a meaningful pay rise.
“We will be increasingly exposed to Donald Trump’s three-word slogans. In the recruitment world, it remains to be seen whether The Great Resignation 2.0 materialises or we see, as Trump might say, “Churn, Baby, Churn.”
This recruitment outlook is supported by the recent NIJobs Jobseeker Snapshot survey, which indicated that employees are open and actively looking for new opportunities. It revealed that 39% of job seekers say salary is the most important motivator for them when looking for a new job, closely followed by employment offerings such as flexible hours (31%) and working model (hybrid/remote) (13%), underscoring the importance of a good work-life balance to candidates.
Looking to the local job market, Q4 data indicates a normalisation of hiring activity. During the last three months of 2024, the number of job openings listed on the NIJobs hiring platform fell by 11%. This represented the first decline in vacancies in four quarters. Despite this easing back, job vacancies in Northern Ireland for Q4 were up 4% year-on-year (UK = -12.7%) and 39% above the corresponding quarter in 2019, which pre-dates the pandemic. Conversely, the UK has seen the number of vacancies broadly return to pre-pandemic levels.
Almost 75% of the thirty-nine employment categories posted more vacancies in the latest quarter than in the corresponding period in 2019. Retail, Skilled Trades & Logistics recorded the biggest net gains in advertised vacancies over the last five years. These were followed by Cleaning, Construction, Management & Social Care. It is noted that the Construction sector had twice as many job vacancies in Q4 2024 than it did five years earlier.
Sam Dooley, Country Director of The Stepstone Group Ireland, with responsibility for NIJobs, adds; “The Job Report provides insight and allows businesses to assess HR needs alongside wider economic trends. It is encouraging to see job listings are higher than this time last year, with top-performing sectors recruiting regularly.
“Reduced investment in employee benefits and pay rises may require employers to rethink how they attract and retain talent. In today’s competitive job market, prioritising employee experience is crucial. Offering support and guidance to employees facing financial or personal challenges, as well as defining career development paths, could create a more attractive and rewarding workplace, helping improve employee satisfaction whilst bolstering retention.”
