Ireland continues to lead the way for flexible working, according to new LinkedIn data published today, which saw the country ranked first for the availability of remote roles, with 9.1% of job postings on the platform in August.
Ireland also ranked second in Europe for hybrid jobs, with 37% of job postings on LinkedIn categorised as hybrid working, closely behind the United Kingdom (39.3% share of all job postings). Remote roles also remain some of the most competitive jobs on LinkedIn, making up 15.4% of job applications in EMEA, with Ireland seeing even greater levels of demand at 20.1%.
Women faced with a ‘double-edged sword’ as a result of flexible work
While flexible working has brought about many benefits for professionals in terms of work-life balance, a new research paper published by LinkedIn has revealed that it also presents a double-edged sword for women. LinkedIn international data shows that men consistently advance faster than women, with 10% of men promoted within 65 months, compared to 74 months for women.
The research revealed that this gap varies depending on flexible working, with on-site roles offering the fastest route for a promotion. Flexible arrangements reduce this gap, but only because progression slows for both men and women.
On-site roles saw 10% of men promoted within 64 months, with 10% of women achieving this within 68 months. Hybrid roles, however, saw delayed promotional opportunities, with men and women being promoted within 70 months and 72 months, respectively. So while flexible work roles lead to greater parity between genders, staff based on site are promoted faster at the expense of slower progression for women.
Demand for AI talent continues to soar
LinkedIn’s data continues to highlight soaring demand for AI talent. AI engineering roles now represent nearly 7% of all technical job postings on LinkedIn – a 63% year-over-year increase. Demand is not limited to technical roles – knowing how to work with AI agents is the fastest-growing skill in 2025, and AI literacy capabilities such as prompt engineering have surged more than 70% in postings across fields like marketing and design.
Commenting on the latest data, LinkedIn Ireland Country Manager Cara O’Leary said:
“Our data has consistently shown that Ireland continues to lead the way for remote and hybrid work opportunities, demonstrating how flexibility has become firmly established as a defining feature of our jobs market.
Professionals are clearly embracing the benefits of choice in how and where they work, with Ireland seeing even stronger demand for remote roles than our European peers. This shows just how fundamental flexible working has become to attracting and retaining top talent, as employers continue to adapt to shifting expectations.”
“At the same time, our research highlights that flexible working is not without its challenges – particularly for women, who continue to face slower progression in the workplace. While hybrid arrangements help to narrow the gender promotion gap, they do so largely by slowing advancement for everyone.
These findings underline the importance of companies being intentional about how they support career development in flexible environments, while also preparing for the next wave of change as AI reshapes roles and skills across industries.”