Human Resources - The Essential Department for 2022

There is no doubt, the pandemic has continued to have an impact on employers and employees across all sectors in Ireland. Human Resources has gone from a necessary business department that often kept things running in the background to being an essential function for any business as the world of work has changed.

Organisations also had to adjust to the many legislative and employment developments that have impacted the workplace. Work from home, even though it was established in 2020, meant many organisations focused more on the virtual employee experience in 2021. Learning and development was an area that saw huge growth and value in many HR teams. Employee wellbeing and work life balance really came to the fore which meant organisations had to redesign the employee experience within their companies.

The ‘Great Resignation’ became a trending topic in 2021 and has seemed to have a knock-on effect with salary scales especially in certain sectors. There is expected increases of nearly 20% for “in demand” roles. We have already noticed a much higher demand for roles such as HR Managers, HR Administrators and other Human Resources Roles as businesses prepare to have staff to deal with all these changes. This will pose a greater challenge for organisations in 2022.

The huge growth and shortage of talent has meant more qualified candidates have a stronger position when it comes to negotiating contracts and offers meaning there will be a huge emphasis on that in the coming year.

According to an article written by RTE, vacancies across Talent Acquisition and Human Resources saw a rise of over 420%. With 2021 being a particularly busy year in recruitment it is anticipated that this trend will continue into 2022. The huge growth of recruitment among HR positions suggests employers are aware of how competitive the market is now, and they are putting necessary resources in place to support their retention and recruitment in 2022.

With the announcement of the end of restrictions and the green light for employees to return to the office, the early part of 2022 will undoubtfully be a challenging hurdle for employers. Remote working has changed the face of the working life with many employees wanting the remote working option to be here to stay. The focus will now be on getting the balance right between working from home and being in the office.

Undoubtedly, this year has been a busy and challenging one for anyone working in Human Resources; from policy changes to employee support but the HR function has become more valuable than ever.

The Right to Request Remote Work Bill 2021 brought forward by government in recent days will introduce for the first time a legal framework in Ireland around requesting remote working arrangements. With all of the huge changes afoot in the World of Work it is looking to be an even busier and challenging year for HR in 2022.

Current Salary guide for HR roles:

Position	Salary
HR Administrator	€30,000 – €35,000
Recruiter	€35,000 – €40,000
HR Generalist / HR Advisor	€40,000 – €50,000
Talent Acquisition Specialist	€45,000 – €55,000
HR Business Partner	€55,000 – €70,000
HR Manager	€60,000 – €85,000