Iarnród Éireann starts new recruitment campaign for up to 80 engine driver positions

Iarnród Éireann is looking to hire up to 80 new train drivers, according to a new recruitment campaign launched today.

The new positions will be in locations such as Dublin (DART, Connolly and Heuston), Cork, Limerick, Galway, Portlaoise and Waterford.

The company is encouraging more women to apply for the new positions, with numbers increasing in recent trainee classes.

It has also highlighted the diverse range of previous careers from which recent driver recruits come, including “from banking to airlines to the armed forces to archaeology, and more”.

Commenting on the recruitment campaign, Iarnród Éireann Chief Executive Jim Meade said: “Iarnród Éireann is a dynamic organization with excellent opportunities for advancement. With the planned expansion of services under the National Development Plan, it is an exciting time to be part of a growing organization.

“We are also seeing great interest in careers at Iarnród Éireann from a range of backgrounds – we are a diverse and inclusive employer and in particular we are encouraging more women to apply for driver positions and are encouraged by the increased interest from women of late encourages recruitment actions.

He added: We don’t just offer jobs, we offer careers and opportunities. I myself joined the railways as an apprentice and with a European Railway and CIPD award-winning talent management function within Iarnród Éireann, we believe we stand by any organization when it comes to enabling our people to fulfill their potential optimal use.”

The company said its investment program, part of the National Development Plan 2021-2030, aims to see rail services grow and improve customer service in the coming years.

It includes a record fleet investment, with 185 wagons on order the largest and most sustainable railway fleet investment in Irish history and up to 750 wagons planned over the next decade.

Meanwhile, the Dart+ program is set to triple electrification and double the capacity of Greater Dublin, with infrastructure work to extend the DART to Maynooth, M3 Parkway, Drogheda and Hazelhatch.

Major investments have been confirmed for rail services in Galway, Cork, Limerick and Waterford.

It said a panel will be set up to hire up to 80 drivers as part of its new train driver recruitment campaign.

Information and applications for hiring drivers can be found at www.irishrail.ie/karriere.