Over one-third of employers want all staff back in the workplace

OVER a third of employers want their staff to return to the workplace for all or most of the time, a survey has found.

It found that the biggest portion – 48pc – favoured a mix of remote working and workplace-based working when pandemic restrictions are lifted.

Just 6pc wanted their staff to work remotely all or most of the time.

The survey of 445 employers by ManpowerGroup also reveals that most plan to pare down their hiring plans over the next three months as lockdowns hamper recruitment.

Public sector and manufacturing bosses are most optimistic, while, unsurprisingly, employers in the hospitality sector are reporting the lowest confidence of any sector.

Their hiring confidence is found to have fallen by 18pc.

Employers in Dublin are most optimistic, with their outlook up 7pc since the beginning of the pandemic.

The Manpower Group Employment Outlook Survey predicts Irish employers’ hiring confidence will fall between April and June this year.

The survey shows the national jobs outlook has fallen by 5pc when compared to the outlook between January and this month.

Managing director of Manpower Group Ireland John Galvin said there was a lot of demand for flexibility and remote working when people began working from home overnight at the start of the pandemic.

“What we’ve started to see are many wanting to get back into the office, even to engage with employees and driving that collaboration.” He said there was anecdotal evidence of people starting to feel lonely and fatigued when they have no other option but to stay at home.

Meanwhile, he said a late summer tourism surge may restore confidence in the hospitality sector.

“What we know of businesses in Ireland is that they are resilient,” he said.

“Despite the fall in outlook quarter on quarter, employers are currently expecting no changes to headcounts for the coming quarter.

“But we must be honest, in the short term the data reflects the challenging business environment and the uncertainty of continued lockdowns.”

He said employers are optimistic and feel there is light at the end of the tunnel due to the vaccine roll-out and hiring will return in the medium to long term.

Nationwide, employers in three out of eight industry sectors report positive outlooks for hiring in the second quarter of this year – these include the services sector, wholesale and retail trade and manufacturing.

Two sectors reported no hiring plans – construction and pharmaceuticals.

Meanwhile, negative outlooks were reported in finance and business services, mining and quarrying, agriculture, forestry and fishing, electricity, gas and water.

The negative outlook was worst in restaurants and hotels.

Larger organisations, with more than 250 employees, are the most likely to hire.

Mr Galvin said manufacturing, one of the sectors worst affected last year by the lockdowns, is now seeing some expansion plans for 2021.