What is causing the labour shortages at the moment?

A substantial number of people have gone home (or to other countries where there were shorter lockdowns possibly) in the past 18 months - service industry jobs that were filled by skilled/experienced Eastern Europeans are now being filled by 18 year olds who aren't skilled/experienced.

What country did they move to? Also, if they overclaimed PUP, it will be ducted from their pay in another European country, that is how it was explained to me.

Its not so much staff shortages more caution re hiring or just hiring. Firstly lots of people have left Ireland for their home countries and probably unlikely to return. There's also a reluctance to re hire full compliments of staff in certain sectors due partly because business levels are still low but also serious uncertainty. Its not so much a staff shortage, businesses, particularly hospitality strategically operating with less staff and limiting service's.

It's not often mentioned but an enormous amount of businesses are still having 75% of their payroll paid through government wage subsidy schemes, I wouldn't be surprised if unemployment will rise the minute this scheme ends.

In addition, whilst most sectors have reopened (some have actually not) , there's enormous debt still hanging over alot of small and medium sized businesses, primarily serious rent debt and warehoused Bank /revenue debt, this is having a direct impact on re hiring or just hiring.

I actually don't believe we've actually experienced the economic impact of the Pandemic yet, but its coming very soon and it won't be pretty.

That's disgraceful having kids with an average age of 15 doing that kind of manual work.

They're far better suited to making iphones from ages 12-16

This is nothing new I'm afraid, I know the industry well, normally however younger staff would compliment more experienced staff during peak and seasonal business, what's actually happening now is young staff essentially being thrown in at the deep end with no training or support.

I know many experienced staff let go at the start of the Pandemic, have applied for various positions and most not even getting responses, the reason is quite simple a lot of hospitality businesses (not all) are trying to keep payroll costs at a minimum, test the waters etc, perhaps chancing their arms, as there is still enormous uncertainty for the immediate future.

I was only making a reference to child labour and cheap electronic devices people use!

It's no harm for teenagers to have a part time job in a hotel or wherever

As someone with around 200 applications, with about 5 interviews and holding a level 6 while at 95% of a level 7 degree, I have to agree. Most do not even reply. It is disheartening to read these headlines when you know they are mainly bollix.

Local authority bin collectors earn over €600 pw albeit not many still running these services, private contractors pay between €14 & €16 ph with drivers earning more but I get your point about other roles.

The home care sector featured prominently last week with the industry representative claiming serious shortages despite excellent wages and seeking permission to bring in non EU applications.

At the same time a number of carer's interviewed on a number of radio programs stating pay and conditions utterly appalling, conditions shocking and in one example despite covering clients in a 40 Mile radius go absolutely no fuel allowance, she reckoned in some situations she was earning the equivalent to €8 pH go figure 🙄, needless to say the industry rep hasn't been heard from since.

And this is the issue, a lot of reporting on staff shortages and yet few good applicants even getting a response or acknowledgement of an application.

I left the hospitality industry 7 years ago, worked in it for almost 30 years and at very senior level. I've many many friends who remained in it, very experienced, a lot were let go at the start of the Pandemic. All have neither been called back, invited to apply and I can for a fact say, their employers are scraping the barrel hiring less experienced staff (some with zero experience), I have to surmise its down to wage costs. I get no satisfaction in saying this but it is sadly true.

Also worth pointing out, the Hospitality sector with some rare exceptions let staff go rather than avail of wage subsidy schemes allowing them retain experienced staff, in essence employers dropped staff like bad habits, alot of these staff have left or gone into something new, then we had representative bodies crying and whinging about staff shortages, I'm afraid it's a bit like the boy who cried wolf.