Foreign Direct Investment in Ireland 2017

In Figure 4.2, the average wages of foreign-owned affiliates are broken down further into the regional ownership of the affiliate. Superimposed on this figure, is the average domestic wage and the wage of Irish MNEs.

 In Figure 3.4 in the previous chapter, it shows that the United Kingdom and Germany have a greater proportion of employees in the retail sector; these proportions drive the average European MNE wage down due to the fact that these sectors have the lowest average wages (Figure 4.5). Figure 4.3 shows that average wages in affiliates with ownership in Europe, with the exception of Luxembourg, were less than in Irish MNEs.

Figure 4.4 shows the average wages in affiliates controlled in non-European significant investor countries.

Except for the average wages paid by Canadian-controlled MNEs, the average wages in Figure 4.4 are all higher than the average wage paid by the Irish MNEs. Notably, average wages from US-owned affiliates have risen significantly in recent years.

The percentage change of these sectoral wages can be seen below in Table 4.2. These figures give an indication of the specific labour demands in Ireland. The information and communications sector’s wage has increased over 25% during the period described.