Louth set for jobs boost as employment expected to rise 6% in 2026

The jobs market in Louth is expected to see a 6% rise in new vacancies and job openings during 2026, according to a new report published by FRS Recruitment.

The 2025 Review & 2026 Trends Forecast report, produced by FRS Recruitment, the winners of the Employment and Recruitment Federation’s Large Agency of the Year award in 2025, reveals that recruiters are forecasting a rebound in the national jobs market this year thanks to a more settled economic outlook for businesses.

This comes on the back of a challenging 2025 which saw a 17% decline nationwide in advertised job vacancies as employers took a cautious approach to hiring in the face of rising costs and the geopolitical uncertainty triggered by the trade tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump.

However, FRS Recruitment witnessed a strong revival in the jobs market in the final quarter of last year, and this rebound is expected to continue throughout 2026, including in Co Louth.

Last year saw a decline in the Irish jobs market as companies across multiple sectors took a cautious approach to hiring. Instead, businesses focussed on cost containment last year by delaying permanent hires or expanding existing roles internally.

One of the sectors which saw the steepest decline in hiring was Accounting & Finance, where the number of job postings plummeted almost 40% last year. Similarly, job openings in the agri-food sector declined up to 15%. Unsurprisingly, both sectors were particularly exposed to the threat of US tariffs.

According to the report, in a bid to manage rising employment costs, many businesses invested in automation processes, while the adoption of artificial intelligence continued apace in many sectors.

FRS Recruitment said that, “Both trends mean certain jobs increasingly face the threat of becoming obsolete, including roles such as general engineering operatives, multi-lingual customer service in business support, and roles in accounts payable and accounts receivable.

“Additionally, the latest increase in the minimum wage and the introduction of the Auto-Enrolment Pension Scheme also forced many businesses to manage staff costs last year or defer hiring plans, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises.

“Many employers chose to offer temporary and contract roles as a quick and cost-effective way of solving staffing challenges last year without increasing their permanent workforce headcount. This strategy saw a 40% increase in the number of temporary jobs available in the Irish market in 2025. However, many of these temporary or contract roles went unfilled due to companies offering poor remuneration levels for demanding job descriptions.

“One noticeable trend from 2025 was the continued rise in tensions between employers and staff over return to office policies. Unsurprisingly, most employees continue to seek positions that offer greater work-life balance and remote working opportunities.

“However, there was a significant uptick last year of companies offering new positions that were strictly office-based. This contrast between employee desires for flexible working and companies seeking to enforce return-to-office policies meant many positions went unfilled last year.”

With less job openings in the market during 2025, potential candidates became much more cautious. Jobseekers applied in higher numbers but were more reluctant to move roles, especially where offers did not sufficiently offset cost-of-living pressures.

Additionally, the opportunities for entry-level positions for graduates dried up significantly as employers sought to hire candidates with more experience and less requirements for training or upskilling. Of the roles that did become available, there was a higher influx of applicants coming from outside the EU, adding to the competition for roles.

Speaking on the report, Lynne McCormack, General Manager of FRS Recruitment, said:

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“2025 was a challenging year for the Irish jobs market, with multiple headwinds creating a lot of uncertainty for companies to deal with. Despite the difficulties faced by my employers in Louth last year, our recruiters are anticipating that the market will rebound next year. 

“With a tariff agreement now in place, there is much more trading certainty for businesses, and I would expect to see a rebound in the jobs market for 2026. In the final quarter of 2025, FRS Recruitment saw a resurgence in the number of job postings across the market, and I believe that trend will continue into the first half of this year.

“Overall, Ireland’s economy continues to grow, and the labour market remains tight, meaning companies will need to compete for talent. It’s also likely we will continue to see trends around investment in AI technology and automation continue this year, as well as increased focus by employers on return to office policies.”