Irish wage growth is storming ahead. By any standards – historical, relative to the rest ofor compared to the general rise in prices – wage growth of 4.1 per cent in the last year is a good result. The rapid rise in jobs seen since 2013 has translated, over the past few years in particular, into higher wages. Weekly earnings have risen by close to 10 per cent over the past five years, a period during which there has been almost no generalised rise in prices.
There are significant differences from sector to sector, looking either at the last year or the long-term trend over the past decade. Most sectors have risen over the past few years, but for some this follows sharp falls during the crisis. Others never took much of a hit – but are now rising strongly. The bottom line is that if you want to make money, work in tech.