The Irish Government is reportedly preparing to launch an outreach campaign targeted at Irish people working in construction abroad that there are well-paid jobs available in Ireland.
Ireland's Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris has been given €750,000 to launch a campaign aimed at increasing the number of men and women working in the construction industry, the Irish Independent reports.
A key part of the strategy will be an outreach programme to workers in cities including New York, London, and Sydney to establish what the Irish Government could do to incentivize them to come home.
The Irish Independent notes: "Direct financial incentives are not on the table to attract workers back to the country but the Department of Higher Education is examining what measures could be used to make Ireland a more attractive place to work."
Harris told the Irish Independent that analysis by his department suggests an extra 50,000 construction workers across all trades will be needed over the next decade to keep up with housing demand.
“We are currently revising those targets in line with the revised housing targets and an increased use of modern methods of construction but we will need more people to work here over the next number of years,” Harris said.
“That is why we are currently considering a number of measures to boost the labour market, including peer-to-peer campaigns for people aged 18 to 24 to show the value of careers in construction and working with guidance counsellors also.
"We will be also targeting Irish workers who live abroad to come home and help build a home. There are a number of people working outside of Ireland and we need them here.”
Harris separately told The Journal: “We want to send a message abroad, we want to send a message to the Irish people who may have left because there weren’t jobs in construction in the past, there weren’t jobs when the economy crashed, that Ireland is a very different place now, that Ireland needs you to come home, Ireland needs you to help us build homes.
"If you wish to come home, there are jobs here, well-paid, reliable jobs, and huge access to skills and education and training at a level not seen before.
“We need your help. So the purpose of this campaign is to spread the word to Irish people abroad, that if you’re working in construction, there’s huge opportunities here in Ireland and so please consider coming home and helping out."
Last October, Harris hosted the annual Construction Sector Skills Forum (CSSF) with experts in the construction sector aimed at boosting participation in the construction workforce.
Harris noted during the forum that craft apprenticeship registrations for 2022 and 2021 increased almost 40% over the preceding two years, but admitted that there is "room for improvement especially when it comes to female participation.”
The forum was hosted about two months after Ireland's Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science launched its 'Careers in Construction: Action Plan.'
The report highlighted the need for the construction industry to recruit and retain a higher number of workers than is currently provided for through education, apprenticeship, and current retention levels.
Meanwhile, it was announced on Monday that Minister Harris will be traveling to Washington, DC and Boston this week to celebrate Ireland's 100 years of diplomatic relations with the US, as well as launch Ireland’s new international Talent and Innovation strategy, Global Citizens 2030 in the US.
The Minister's visit comes a week after Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin attended meetings in both Washington DC and Chicago.
Next month, 11 Irish politicians will head to the US as part of the Irish Government's annual St. Patrick's Day Programme, which this year aims to promote "Ireland's Future in the World."
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