State agencies on recruitment drive due to job vacancies

The CCPC is making “significant” efforts to hire staff, with 26 jobs currently in the recruitment process, junior enterprise minister Dara Calleary has told the Dáil.

Among the senior positions currently vacant are a principal officer in the data regulation division, and a director of the European Consumer Centre, which both come with a salary of €122,324 a year.

There are also vacancies for deputy directors in communications; competition enforcement and mergers; legal services; and policy research – all of which have annual salaries of €103,184.

Mr Calleary said the CCPC’s remit is expanding, due to new EU legislation aimed at strengthening protection for consumers in online markets, such as the Digital Services Act.

“There has also been significant additional competition and consumer enforcement powers given to the CCPC by way of legislation, such as the Competition Amendment Act, which represents the biggest overhaul of competition law in Ireland for a generation,” Mr Calleary added.

“The Consumer Rights Act 2022 represents the most significant reform of consumer protection law in Ireland in the last 40 years.”

The minister said the CCPC’s funding has increased due to these extra functions, and it has been given €25.7m this year. He was responding to a Dáil question from Catherine Murphy of the Social Democrats who said there appears to be significant expansion underway in the CCPC, with a broad range of roles to be filled.

The CCPC said it is currently establishing new teams to oversee work in new areas of responsibility, and is recruiting “at pace”. It said most of the vacancies are new roles that were only recently approved. While 26 roles are being recruited, the remaining 22 are scheduled to be filled by the end of the year.

ComReg has permission for a staff complement of 232, but the current headcount is 157.5. It has 74.5 vacancies, and is currently recruiting.

Following the transposition of the European Electronic Communications Code into law last year, ComReg got new powers, including the ability to set minimum quality-of-service standards for consumers.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan recently said ComReg “is in the process of scaling up quite significantly” and he pointed out that much of its costs come from industry “so it is not an immediate burden on the State”.

Other public agencies with a high number of vacancies include the Commission for Regulation of Utilities, which has 34 posts free, as it aims for a workforce of 196.

There are 13 vacancies at the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman (FSPO), the Dáil has been told in reply to other TDs’ questions. The FSPO currently has 100 staff.

There are 31 vacancies at the Workplace Relations Commission, which is targeting a workforce of 225. There are five posts free at the Office of the Information Commissioner, three at the Labour Court, and it is expected the new gambling regulator will recruit a further nine staff this year.