Ireland falls in rankings of attractive work destinations

Ireland has fallen four places to rank 36 in the most attractive countries for professionals across the world to work.

A new report from The Stepstone Group, the parent company of hiring platform IrishJobs, shows that Dublin placed 36th in the most desirable cities for global talent to work, unchanged since the last survey in 2020.

Quality of life is the top reason that professionals choose to relocate to Ireland, followed by quality of job opportunities, and safety, stability and security.

European countries make up 7 of the top 10 countries where Ireland is considered a top destination for work.

These include Portugal, Hungary, Estonia, Spain, Netherlands, Italy and the UK.

Pakistan, the UAE and Ghana are the countries outside Europe where Ireland is viewed as a top destination to work.

The research shows that workers who move to Ireland expect support from employers across a wide range of areas including housing and visas/work permits.

According to the study, the UK remains the top destination for professionals in Ireland looking to work abroad, Australia has risen to second place, followed by the US in third position.

Only 8% of workers in Ireland describe themselves as actively seeking to work abroad. This compares to an average global figure of 23%.

“At the national level, while Ireland remains a relatively attractive location for talent to relocate and work, its fall in this year’s rankings may be a sign that the infrastructure challenges that the economy faces, particularly in housing supply, are having a greater impact on the desire of talent to move to the country,” said Sam Dooley, Country Director of The Stepstone Group Ireland

“It is crucial that employers, Government and representative groups work together to address these challenges and make sure that Ireland has the right infrastructure and policies in place to be an attractive location for global talent into the future,” Mr Dooley said.

The Decoding Global Talent 2024 report is published in partnership with Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network, a global alliance of more than 70 recruitment websites.

It is based on survey data from more than 150,000 workforce respondents from 188 countries, including 1,746 respondents in Ireland, and is the fourth instalment in a series, the previous editions having been published in 2014, 2018, and 2021.