Hundreds of job seekers flock to Offaly Job Fair

The event, held in the Tullamore Court Hotel, was officially opened by the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment, Dara Colleary.

He paid tribute to the Chamber and its sponsors for organising the event and said one of the Government’s top priorities was enacting measures to ensure the economy continued to perform and deliver growth and jobs.

Anthony Hanniffy, President of Tullamore Chamber, said the fair was aimed at a wide diaspora of job-seekers, from the school-leaver hoping to find an apprenticeship or further their education, to the commuter looking to work closer to home and enjoy a better work/life balance to those looking to further their careers to those financially stretched looking to live outside the major cities where the cost of living is more affordable.

Added Mr Hanniffy: “I am very enthused about our future here in County Offaly. Not only are our hurling teams doing the business on the pitch with our U20 All-Ireland and Joe McDonagh Cup wins and believe me these were very important for our confidence as a county. We have a strong generation coming through into adulthood, our businesses are remaining strong and growing, our community spirit is high and these all make the county a wonderful place to live and work”

He paid tribute to Minister Colleary whom he said “has been very helpful to Co. Offaly over the past few years – he has visited us here a no. of times, offered us advice and acted as a sounding board to different ideas we have generated.”

“Being from a rural community very similar to ourselves gives him a unique insight into the issues that we face,” observed the Screggan based President.

He also thanked Minister Pippa Hackett , Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and newly Elected MEP Barry Cowen. “We’d all like to congratulate Barry on his election. He has been a fantastic TD for us here in Offaly for the past 13 years and I know he’ll do a great job of representing us in Europe.”

The President also paid tribute to Jean Ryan, Acting Director of Services in Offaly County Council, for their sponsorship and support as well as the newly elected councillors who were present – Neil Feighery, Tony McCormack, Ollie Bryant, John Clendennen, Noel Cribbin and Declan Harvey.

Said Mr Hanniffy: “I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate you all on your election. It’s no easy feat to put your name on the ballot paper so well done to you all. The Chamber had a great rapport with the previous council and I’m glad that many of you were re-elected and we look forward to working with you and the newly elected members again over the next five years.”

He said that over the past few years the Chamber of Commerce has worked to support members through some very difficult times.

Continued Mr Hanniffy: “As we emerged from the Covid landscape and into the cost of living crisis we consulted with local businesses on the types of supports that would benefit the local business community the most. We expected the events of the past few years to have negatively impacted businesses but were pleasantly surprised at the strength and resilience of our community, with most businesses looking to push forward and grow despite the challenging times.”

He observed that there are some tremendous projects completed or in progress in Offaly at the moment and these have huge potential moving forward.

“Indeed I was delighted to attend a briefing this week on the proposed Tullamore Regeneration Framework and Grand Canal Harbour Masterplan. These projects have the opportunity to transform our local area and the Chamber will support both projects to the best of its ability.”

The Chamber President noted that we will soon be entering a General Election Cycle and he called on all parties to give businesses the respect that they deserve.

“Our economy is very strong – I’m going to borrow a phrase from Donald Trump – this economy is the greatest the world has ever seen. It’s hard to believe where we are now compared to the financial crash 15 years ago. This economy has been generated via hard work and perseverance and in no small way via our taxation system.”

He said it worried him to hear of talk of increasing the Corporation Tax Rate . “As a country we have enticed nearly all of the world’s top business to setup units here. These businesses have created high paying jobs and generated further jobs in indigenous Irish businesses in their supply chains. If we start messing with the Corporation Tax Rate then we run the risk of scaring some of these businesses away when they’re next making decisions on where to invest in new units. I would urge all parties to think long and hard about their policies in this area.”

Concluding Mr Hanniffy thanked the Chamber’s events committee for making this event a reality.

“Anne Starling and the team have left no stone unturned to make it the event it is. There have been many hours work completed and I’m sure you’ll agree that it was definitely worth is.”

“This event wouldn’t be possible without the support of Offaly County Council, Offaly Local Development, Offaly Local Enterprise Office, Laois Offaly Education Training Board and The Technical University of the Shannon.”