Irish employers have reported the greatest difficulty finding candidates with the right skills in 20 years, according to recent research.

The survey recorded that 83% of employers said that they are struggling to find candidates.

Businesses said that IT and data skills are the hardest to find skillsets for the fourth consecutive year, followed by operations and logistics skills, engineering skills, sustainability skills, and customer-facing skills.

The survey also found that the percentage of employers intending to offer hybrid or remote work has halved, from 38% in 2024 to 17% in 2025.

To find talent, employers said they are increasing job advertising budgets and offering flexibility over working hours, while 28% of respondents said they are upskilling and reskilling employees to bridge talent gaps.