COVID-19’s Changes to the Irish Job Market: Employees’ Perspectives from Food, Retail and Construction Sectors

Lund, Vaughan Andrew Bjørn (2022) COVID-19’s Changes to the Irish Job Market: Employees’ Perspectives from Food, Retail and Construction Sectors. Masters thesis, Dublin, National College of Ireland.

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Abstract

The negative outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic have been disproportionately distributed between nations, lower-paid workers, and sectors. In Ireland, despite targeted government interventions, individuals earning minimum wage and working within food, retail and construction sectors in particular have suffered more job losses, received less compensatory spending power, and been more exposed to the virus itself. This paper gathered data from semi-structured interviews of people working in these sectors, and performed a thematic analysis in order to answer the research question: How have COVID-19’s changes to the Irish job market impacted employment in the food, retail and construction sectors? Results outlined a detailed relationship between the pandemic and a number of negative working experiences the participants faced: Abruptness of change, additional workload, negative client interactions, neglect of employee well-being, lack of communication, inconsistency between workplaces, employee uncertainty and lack of familiarity or satisfaction with governmental welfare schemes. Suggestions were made towards

Item Type:	Thesis (Masters)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Specific Industries > Construction Industry H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Specific Industries > Food Industry H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Issues of Labour and Work H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Issues of Labour and Work > Quality of Work Life / Job Satisfaction H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor > Specific Industries > Retail Industry
Divisions:	School of Business > Master of Arts in Human Resource Management
Depositing User:	Clara Chan
Date Deposited:	19 Nov 2022 12:42
Last Modified:	19 Nov 2022 12:42
URI:	https://norma.ncirl.ie/id/eprint/5888

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