In the HSE, more than €1.4bn was spent on temporary agency staff in the five-year period to 2018
In 2014, €277 million was spent on agency staff, €259 million in 2015, €277 million in 2016, €301 million in 2017 and €330 million in 2018.In the Department of the Taoiseach, a contract cleaning service is being used at a cost of almost €55,000 since 2017.
In the Department of Foreign Affairs, more than €2 million has been spent on hiring 114 agency staff. These are employed in a “small number” of diplomatic missions. “Open competitions for direct employment of locally engaged staff are generally held once there is clarity on operational requirements and the number and profile of the roles required.”
Minister for Business Heather Humphreys said where there is a requirement for “particular critical skills that are not available at a point in time, or when a particular service is required for a short period of time, my department will use the services of an employment agency to acquire the required skills”.