Two-thirds of people in management are uncomfortable dealing with older staff, according to Cpl's latest Employment Market Monitor.

Commenting on the findings, Cpl director Peter Cosgrove said that the fact that 67% of young employees find it difficult to manage older staff will have to be addressed as people increasingly want to stay in employment for longer.

“About three-quarters of people reaching retirement want to continue working and older staff offer benefits such as more experience, better attendance, and improved diversity of thought within the workforce,” said Cosgrove.

“Our findings suggest a need for greater education of managers in the workforce and an increased focus on what skills and abilities a person can bring to a role, regardless of age."

Another noteworthy finding is that 77% of employers believe it's reasonable to have employees check the odd email after work hours. This means that 4 out of 5 employers expect to see out-of-hours connectivity as standard.

Elsewhere, 58% of employers are looking at machines which could do a human’s job and over half of employers are less likely to hire a candidate with a tattoo.

The overwhelming majority of employers were put off by tardiness at jobs interviews (82%) and poor personal hygiene (81%). Casual dress at an interview created a negative impression for 51% of employers, with there being a similar 50/50 split amongst employers on whether casual dress was appropriate at work.

The Cpl Jobs Index – in existence since 2011 – reached a new high for 2016, hitting 223 in the second quarter. This is more than twice the number of jobs posted on average in 2011.

The rate of jobs growth continues to accelerate in the FDI sector, despite a small levelling off during 2015.

Of the four sectors covered, the strongest growth for the third time in four quarters was in accountancy, finance and banking, at 39% year-on-year.