The number of job advertisements appearing in newspapers fell by 12 per cent in the second quarter as the public sector recruitment freeze hits begins to take effect on a weak jobs market.
Bank of Ireland's job index - which measures recruitment advertising in the daily and Sunday papers - said the largest decline occurred in the public sector, which experienced a 26 pert cent cut in job ads, compared with the same quarter last year.
Commenting on the index, Dr Dan McLaughlin, chief economist at Bank of Ireland, said that the budget decision to cap employment in the public sector is "beginning to bite".
Within the public sector, recruitment in educational is down 14 per cent but the most dramatic change is in healthcare with jobs advertised down 36 per cent, implying the jobs boom in the public sector may be well and truly over.
The decline was also felt in the private sector where job ads are also down - but to a much lesser degree - 6.6 per cent over the same quarter in 2002.
All sectors experienced a decline in recruitment activity in the quarter with the exceptions of manufacturing — which increased by 7 per cent — and the professional sector, which experienced strong growth of 29 per cent. The increase in manufacturing recruitment seems inconsistent with recent data indicating the sector is struggling and with recent announcements of factory closures.
The professional sector also showed strong year on year monthly growth (+22 per cent), continuing the positive trend seen in May.
Of the ten sectors measured by the index, the IT sector experienced the largest decline of 42 per cent.