Recruitment

Licence to skill: how recruitment difficulties are hindering Irish business at all levels

Finding suitable workers in sectors from hospitality to IT to retail is proving increasingly difficult for employers and some say the shortages pose a threat to our economic future

Colin Duggan, general manager of the Woodford Dolmen Hotel in Carlow: ‘In the hospitality industry, in management and also in chefs, we need a priority in visas to allow some great talent to come from abroad.’ Picture: Finbarr O’Rourke

Last October, Colin Duggan, the general manager of the Woodford Dolmen Hotel in Carlow, applied for a visa for a new chef he was bringing into Ireland from outside Europe. Seven months later, he is still waiting for a decision on the application.

With the skills shortage biting the hospitality sector since the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, Duggan has been forced to look further and further afield to get staff, especially chefs. A few weeks ...