There was a fall of 15.4% in the number of new professional job opportunities in the second quarter of the year compared to the previous quarter, according to the latest Morgan McKinley Employment Monitor.
The number of job applicants in the quarter was 20% higher than the same period last year, primarily due to the tech sector downturn and an increase in business support professionals entering the job market.
There was a slight decrease of 0.8% in professional job seekers compared to the previous quarter.
According to the monitor, employers are increasingly resisting remote working arrangements and emphasising the importance of physical presence in the office.
However, the report notes that employers who are flexible have greater access to skilled talent.
Global FDI Director with Morgan McKinley Ireland Trayc Keevans said various sectors experienced a decrease in employment opportunities during the second quarter of the year.
"The technology sector has shown some resilience with single-digit declines in professional job opportunities, down 7.8%, and an 11% growth in contract opportunities," Ms Keevans said.
"More notably there was a 43% decrease in construction opportunities coming to market for this period due to the long lag time in filling prior positions due to the shortage of skills and difficulty in bringing overseas talent into the market to bridge the gap due to challenges in securing housing," she added.
Some sectors continue to experience growth such as life sciences, engineering and financial services.
The Morgan McKinley employment monitor tracks the number of new job vacancies and new candidates in the Republic of Ireland each quarter.
