The number of  professional job vacancies in Ireland decreased by 12% from November to December 2010, according to the latest Morgan McKinley Irish Employment Monitor.

The monitor also reveals that 42.8% of managers say their firms were planning to hire new staff, while for 39.2% hiring is on hold and 18% unsure of their hiring activity for the next 12 months.

Most managers (63.6%) across the finance, technical, office support and IT functions in Ireland anticipate basic salaries in their organisations to stay the same over the next 12 months, while just over a quarter (25.7%) expect an increase.