Irish SMEs far more likely to hire non-EU staff than other European countries, report finds

Seán McCárthaigh

Small and medium enterprises in Ireland are far more likely to recruit staff from outside the EU than similar-sized firms in other EU member states, according to the findings of a new report.

However, the survey commissioned by the European Commission also revealed that 57 per cent of Irish SMEs found the process of hiring non-EU staff difficult, while 30 per cent said it was difficult to integrate such employees into their company.

The Eurobarometer poll found that 25 per cent of Irish SMEs have tried to hire non-EU workers to address their skills shortage compared to the EU average of 14 per cent.

Ireland’s rate was the joint second-highest with Germany after Malta at 48 per cent.

The report, which involved a survey of 12,900 SMEs (companies with less than 250 employees) across all 27 EU member states last December was designed to assess the barriers they faced in recruiting workers from outside the EU.

The survey included over 500 firms in the Republic.

“Finding and recruiting skilled staff for SMEs continues to be a persistent challenge across the EU,” the report stated.

Despite variations across countries, it said the numbers showed that recruiting third-country nationals had not yet become mainstream practice in the EU with the exception of Malta.

It said the lower rates of international recruitment observed in central and eastern European countries as well as in Nordic states might reflect less strained labour markets, lower perceived attractiveness for non-EU workers or more restrictive migration policies.

The report added: “The fact that non-EU recruitment remains a limited practice in most countries including those facing acute recruitment tensions suggests the existence of structural barriers that transcend national contexts.”

The main reason cited by Irish SME’s for not hiring non-EU staff was sufficient qualified candidates within the EU followed by vacant roles requiring specific language skills.

At the same time, more than half (53 per cent) reported having difficulty in recruiting staff with the right skills over the previous two years, compared to the EU average of 43 per cent.

Among Irish firms, 19 per cent stated it had been “very difficult” to hire the right staff.

Less than a quarter of such companies (23 per cent) said they were familiar with support services that could help them to recruit third country nationals from outside the EU.

The report showed that 52 per cent of Irish SMEs claimed they received support with administrative procedures such as work and residence permits, while 44 per cent obtained financial support in the form of grants, subsidies or tax incentives.

Retention of non-EU staff did not emerge as a significant issue with just 15% claiming it was difficult to keep such employees – below the EU average rate of 26 per cent.

Irish SMEs claim the main difficulties encountered were the lack of professional skills to perform the job and difficulties with the recognition of qualifications.

The report revealed that Irish SMEs are far more likely to use social media platforms such as LinkedIn or Instagram for recruitment purposes.

The survey showed 59 per cent use social media for hiring staff compared to the EU average of 28 per cent.

Construction was the most common sector to hire staff from outside the EU with 17 per cent of SMEs across the EU having sourced skilled construction workers such as bricklayers, carpenters and plasterers followed by 14 per cent who employed food preparation and processing workers such as cooks and butchers.

Others were cleaning and support services (12 per cent) and drivers and transport operators (10 per cent).

The report said the common thread among the sectors which recruited non-EU workers was their “manual nature.”

The pattern in Ireland was slightly different with 24 per cent of SMEs having hired workers from outside the EU as mechanical and industrial engineers, followed by accountants and financial professionals (20 per cent) and drivers and transport operators (12 per cent).