As a result participants who contributed to the report have said that they fear for their jobs, amid a difficult economic climate.
Hiring platform Greenhouse has published the 2025 Workforce and hiring report, highlighting the issues facing professionals and jobseekers as they navigate the working landscape.
The organisation collected data from more than 2,200 full-time and temporarily unemployed people from Ireland, the UK and the US, between the ages of 18 and 79 years old. What was discovered is that there is a serious lack of confidence amongst both employed people and jobseekers as they traverse a volatile economic climate.
Poor hiring practices were among one of the more concerning problems derailing modern-day jobseekers, with just 7pc of participating people of the opinion that the current jobs market favours them. Almost seven out of every 10 candidates, across all markets, stated that the environment is too competitive, with more candidates than available positions.
While Irish contributors were found to be more optimistic about the jobseekers market, when compared to their US and UK counterparts, with 69pc confident in the jobs landscape, only 25pc of employees based in Ireland said that they have job stability in the current economy.
Robots and ghosts
AI has emerged as a significant concern among employees, with 23pc of those surveyed in Ireland explaining that the use of artificial intelligence in the job application process has made it harder to stand out against the competition. 42pc admitted to using AI ahead of an interview and 16pc use AI tools when submitting their applications.
Commenting on the report, Daniel Chait, the CEO and co-founder of Greenhouse said, “Hiring is stuck in an AI doom loop. Only 7pc of candidates feel that the market favors them right now. As this technology advances, it makes it easier than ever to apply, flooding the system with noise.
“With 25pc of Gen Z saying AI has made it harder for them to stand out, candidates entering the market are up against more applications, more automation and less clarity. We don’t need more friction or hoops to jump through, we need a hiring process that allows people’s true selves to come through more clearly and more completely.”
Ghosting on behalf of the potential employer was also shown to be an issue in the Greenhouse report. 66pc of candidates in Ireland said that an employer cut off communication post-interview. In the UK there was an interesting age element, in that 71pc of Gen Z contributors reported ghosting, compared to 49pc of Gen X and 54pc of Boomers.
Alternatively, ghosting also occurred on the other side, with more than half of Irish (51pc) contributors admitting that they have deliberately cut off communication with a potential employer.
The report suggested that some of the reasons as to why a candidate might ghost an employer can include frustration at a poor interview process and the discovery of an unsatisfactory salary.
According to the survey, in Ireland, 46pc of Gen Z candidates reported that the benefits package was less comprehensive than initially presented. In fact salary deception was shown to cross all markets surveyed.
“A more human and three-dimensional hiring process that helps candidates showcase their skills and focus their job search is the only way to cut through the chaos and connect the right people to the right roles,” said Chait.
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