Business cited the cost of labour as the most rapidly rising expense last year in the Chambers Ireland SME business confidence survey, published yesterday.
Asked to name their four most rapidly rising business costs, 35 per cent of 601 respondents listed labour first. In all, 70 per cent of respondents mentioned labour as one of the top four costs.
The other costs that featured heavily were: energy (named by 50 per cent of respondents); insurance (50 per cent); and local authority charges (42 per cent).
In a commentary, Chambers Ireland said 44 per cent of businesses intended to increase prices in response to rising costs.
This compared to fewer than one in 10 respondents in 2003. The change reflected the frustration of business "at consistent increases, particularly in areas under a certain degree of government control, eg local government charges, and also the inflationary realities of almost full employment".
It also criticised the failure to introduce competition in energy, health and communications.
The survey found that 54 per cent of respondents said they had experienced an increase in turnover compared to 2004, while 16 per cent said they had experienced a decrease.
A majority, 59 per cent, said they expected turnover to increase in 2006, while 32 per cent said they expected turnover to be maintained at 2005 levels.
Just one in 10 respondents said they had reduced the size of their workforce in 2005.
