This decline is detrimental to the earnings and the participation rates of the middle-class, affecting, in particular, workers without a tertiary education. New technologies are also having a multifaceted impact on labour intensity (as measured by the average number of hours worked per worker).
Partly this was a function of the degree to which many of Ireland’ s leading firms, both in manufacturing and services, have been foreign-owned and brought their finance with them. But I would be cautious about assuming that Ireland does not therefore need much credit in the years ahead of recovery.