Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) 2023 - Skills Use and Social Outcomes

The objective of this chapter is to provide an overview of skills mismatch assessed in the PIAAC survey of adults aged between 25 and 65 years old across all participating countries. The two types of mismatches assessed were qualifications and skills.

A qualification mismatch occurs when a worker had higher or lower levels of educational attainment than required for their job. In PIAAC 2023, the response to the question “If applying today, what would be the usual qualification, if any, that someone would need to get this type of job?” provided an estimate of the required qualifications for a person’s job. Respondents were classified as over-qualified if the level of their highest qualification was above the required qualification and under-qualified if it was below it.

A skills mismatch occurs when a worker had either higher or lower skills than required for their job. This measure used the addition of an improved self-reported measure of skills mismatch in the 2023 PIAAC. Respondents were asked “Overall, which of the following statements best describes your skills in relation to what is required to do your job?” Those who answered “Some of my skills are lower than what is required by my job and need to be further developed” were classified as under-skilled in their job, while those that answered “My skills are higher than required by my job” were classified as over-skilled. Respondents who answered “My skills are matched to what is required by my job” were considered well-matched.

Qualification Mismatch

In Ireland, 23% of workers aged 25–65 were over-qualified for their job position, 13% were under-qualified, and 64% were well-matched.

The over-qualification rate in Ireland (23%) was significantly lower than in Germany (28%) and Canada (28%). The under-qualification rate in Ireland (13%) was significantly higher than the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) average (9%), Germany (7%), Finland (10%), and Canada (10%). The share of well-matched workers in Ireland (64%) was significantly lower than in Finland (71%) (See Figure 3.1, Table 3.1, and PxStat Table PIAAC24).

Skills Mismatch

Ireland had a relatively high rate of over-skilling and a low rate of under-skilling. More than three in ten (33%) workers aged 25-65 in Ireland were over-skilled, which was significantly higher than the OECD average (26%) and Finland (18%). Less than one in ten (7%) were under-skilled, which was significantly lower than the OECD average (10%), Germany (10%), and Finland (20%). Six in ten (60%) adults aged 25-65 in Ireland were well-matched in terms of skills, which was significantly lower than the OECD average (64%) (See Figure 3.2, Table 3.1, and PxStat Table PIAAC24).

Under-skilling by Skill Type

Among under-skilled workers aged 25 to 65 in Ireland, the most reported areas of insufficient proficiency were computer or software skills (51%) and team-working or leadership skills (26%). Ireland reported significantly lower under-skilling in foreign language skills (5%) compared with the OECD average (21%), Germany (22%), Finland (26%), and Canada (13%). While the UK (England) reported a higher rate of under-skilling in foreign languages at 9%, the difference with Ireland is not statistically significant, suggesting a possible shared effect of English language predominance. Ireland also had significantly lower under-skilling in operating machinery/equipment (14%) compared with Finland (27%) (See Figure 3.3, Table 3.2, and PxStat Table PIAAC25).