What are the typical earnings of these occupations?
How do you get a job in this sector?
What are the main occupations in this sector?
The main occupation within the sector is the Professional Forester who would typically be qualified to degree level.
However due to the manual nature of forestry work there is also an ongoing need for skilled operatives and supervisors for planting, harvesting and processing operations which can often be completed on a contract basis.
What types of employment contracts are there?
Directly and indirectly there is an estimated 16,000 jobs within the sector. While many of these jobs are full-time there are also seasonal, part-time and casual employment opportunities mainly in the operational forestry area.
What are the typical earnings of these occupations?
Salaries and earnings compare favourably with many other sectors including banking and building. A graduate forester might expect a starting salary of circa €35,000 while an experienced professional foresters could expect to earn a salary in the region of €50,000 to €60,000 per annum.
How do you get a job in this sector?
There are a number of ways in which people can gain employment in this sector.The forestry sector is made up of both public and private jobs. Some jobs are sourced locally especially those provided by independent contractors who carry out forestry operations like planting, harvesting and transport.
Some of the professional and specialist jobs are either advertised in the national press of may be sourced through job agencies. Coillte is the largest public sector employer in this area and would expect to employ circa 15 to 20 new full-time staff in any year.
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Questions about the sector
Questions about the career opportunities
Questions about education and training
Questions about global opportunities
Advice for people interested in this area
Engineer - Chemical
James Ryan "The thing I like most about the graduate programme is the amount of variety you experience on a day to day basis"
Professional Forester
Paulina Pawlukojc "This job is for someone who is an outdoor person, who loves nature, enjoys walking and doesn't mind the weather"
Harvesting Forester
Mark O Loughlin "I always took part in outdoor activities in school and during my College years I gained a greater insight into the sector by doing part time Forestry work"
Business Analyst
Fintan O'Brien "I prepare management accounts for different sections of the company and I am also involved in writing business and strategic plans"
