1. Jobs & Investment 2013 – 2018
The Limerick 2030 Economic and Spatial Plan, launched by Limerick City and County Council in 2013, is a once in a generation plan to guide the economic, social and physical renaissance of Limerick City centre, the wider county and Mid-West Region. As part of this ambitious and transformational Plan, Limerick is investing over €1 billion in enterprise and investment infrastructure.
The 2030 Plan aims to deliver 12,000 jobs, with 5,000 of these in the city centre, and Limerick has been very successful in delivering on this jobs target to date. Between 2013 and July 2018 close to 14,400 jobs, and over €2 billion of investment, have been announced for Limerick (Tables 1 & 2).The main sectors for job announcements in Limerick include ICT, Biopharma/Medical, Fintech, Retail/Hospitality, Creative Industries and Hi-Tech Manufacturing/Engineering.
This success in recent years is being recognised internationally with Limerick ranked as one of the top 10 locations in Western Europe in which to invest by the sixth global ‘Best to Invest Report’ compiled by Site Selection.
| Year | Full Time Jobs | Retail Jobs | Construction Jobs | Total New jobs | Investment €m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 944 | 10 | 1,660 | 2,614 | €596.0 |
| 2014 | 980 | 170 | 150 | 1,300 | €80.0 |
| 2015 | 2,762 | 87 | 674 | 3,523 | €569.6 |
| 2016 | 1,323 | 506 | 128 | 1,957 | €84.5 |
| 2017 | 1,722 | 249 | 1,355 | 3,326 | €353.7 |
| 2018 | 1,357 | 244 | 50 | 1,651 | €346.6 |
| Total 2013 - 2018 | 9,088 | 1,266 | 4,017 | 14,371 | €2,030.4 |
| Year | Key Jobs Announced |
|---|---|
| 2013 | Regeneron (300), Vistakon (100), Worldwide Tech Service (62), ACI Worldwide (60) |
| 2014 | Johnson & Johnson (100), Optel Vision (140), Viagogo (100), Gilt Group (60), Ethicon Biosurgery (270), Kemp (50), Three (100), Filtertek (35) |
| 2015 | Teckro (100), Design Pro (85), Regeneron (200), MECO (44), Uber (300), Analog Devices (100), Northern Trust (300), Icon Plc (100), Viagogo (100) |
| 2016 | Ernst & Young (50), Ortec Inc (110), The Range (80), Fazzi (300), WP Engine (100), Trusource Labs (134), ACI Worldwide (68), Redfaire (40), Casa Systems (50), Becton Dickinson & Company (100), Acacia Communications (30) |
| 2017 | Optel Vision (100), Virgin Media (120) Adare Manor (350 full time jobs), Northern Trust (400), HCL (100), Stats (100), Regeneron (300) |
| 2018 | H&MV (150), AMCS (100), Nordic Aviation Capital (300), Uber (150), Becton Dickinson & Company (85), Clenn Construction (50), Rigid Containers (30), Stats (50), UL Connect (55) |
2. Labour Market Performance
The CSO’s Labour Force Survey shows that the unemployment rate in Limerick and the Mid West Region was 5.2% in Q1 2018. The region’s unemployment rate has declined considerably in recent years as highlighted in Figure 1, and was significantly lower than the national average unemployment rate of 5.7% in Q1 2018. The improved labour market performance is reflective of the ongoing jobs announcements in Limerick.
3. Population Growth 1996 - 2016
The CSO’s Census 2016 results show that Limerick’s population has grown by 1.6% since Census 2011. In 2016, Limerick’s population was recorded at 194,899 persons, which was an increase of 3,090 persons over the four year period.
Figure 2 shows that during the 20 year period from 1996 to 2016 Limerick’s population grew by over 18%. The Census results highlight that Limerick has a very favourable age profile with close to 50% of the population under the age of 35.
4. Disposable Income & Gross Value Added
The CSO’s most recent County Incomes and Regional GDP Report 2015 (published in 2018) shows that Limerick (€22,187) has the highest disposable income per person in Ireland outside of Dublin (€23,298). Figure 3 shows that disposable income per capita in Limerick was significantly higher than the national average (€20,334) and other Irish cities in 2015.
The County Incomes and Regional GDP Report highlights that the Mid West Region, of which Limerick is the capital, recorded Gross Value Added (GVA) of €38,109 in 2015.
GVA per person for the Mid West has been the third highest across the Irish regions in recent years, with productivity in the Mid West increasing by over 36.6% from 2011 to 2015 (Figure 4).
