How Temporary Roles Are Powering the Career Comeback

A New Chapter for Career Returners

Returning to work after a break can be intimidating. Maybe you took time out to raise a family, retrain, travel, or recover from redundancy. Whatever the reason, stepping back into Ireland’s fast-moving world of hybrid schedules, digital tools, and leaner teams can feel like starting over.

Yet thousands of Irish professionals are finding a smoother re-entry route through temporary and contract roles. These positions – once viewed as short-term stopgaps – are now powerful vehicles for rebuilding confidence, updating skills, and proving capability in real-time settings.

 

The Landscape: Why Ireland Needs Returners

Ireland’s labour market remains close to full employment, but hidden beneath the headline numbers are skills shortages and participation gaps. According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), employment stood at 2.79 million in Q1 2025, with unemployment at just 4.3 percent.

That tight market means employers can’t afford to overlook anyone. Returners – experienced professionals who’ve stepped away temporarily – represent a vital, under-tapped segment.

A 2024 IBEC Future of Work survey found that 68 percent of Irish employers are struggling to fill business-support and finance vacancies. Many now rely on contract staffing to maintain service continuity.

Temporary work gives both sides what they need: employers get talent fast, and returners get flexibility and structure.

 

The Appeal for Career Returners

1. Confidence through Currency

After time away, many returners worry that technology or workplace culture has moved on. Temporary assignments provide an instant update. You’re back using the latest software, reporting tools, and processes from day one – no long onboarding, no lag time.

As the CIPD Ireland Workforce Planning & Resourcing guide notes, short-term contracts can be a bridge for people rebuilding employability because they offer “exposure, structure and a credible employment reference” without long-term pressure.

2. Flexibility that Fits Real Life

Many returners aren’t ready – or willing – to dive straight into full-time hours. Temporary work lets them design a gradual return, often three or four days a week, with remote-hybrid options that balance professional ambition and family logistics.

The CSO’s Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey found that 16.7 percent of Irish employees already use flexible schedules; temporary contracts simply formalise that flexibility.

3. Learning through Exposure

Every short-term role brings a different system, team, and challenge. That variety accelerates learning far faster than static permanent roles. For example, an executive assistant who completes three six-month contracts across financial services, higher education, and renewable energy gains new technical and interpersonal range — instantly more employable than before.

4. A Route Back to Permanence

Many employers now design temp-to-perm pathways deliberately. HR leaders surveyed in the CIPD HR Practices in Ireland 2024 Report said they see contract assignments as “probation periods in disguise” — a low-risk way to test fit before offering a full contract.

Returners who perform well frequently convert to permanent roles, often faster than external applicants.

 

Employers’ Perspective: The Strategic Case for Returners

From the employer’s side, the logic is just as strong.

1. Access to Skilled, Motivated Talent

Returners are rarely novices. Many bring 10-plus years of prior experience in finance, admin, or operations. They hit the ground running and are often more motivated to prove themselves.

2. Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Gains

Supporting return-to-work candidates contributes directly to DEI goals. McKinsey’s Diversity Wins report shows that gender-diverse organisations are 25 percent more likely to outperform peers financially. Many returners are women re-entering after caregiving, so inclusive hiring channels make measurable impact.

3. Retention through Flexibility

Temporary arrangements often evolve into long-term loyalty. Once employers demonstrate trust and understanding, returners frequently stay for years — first as contractors, then as core staff.

4. Employer Brand Value

In an era where reputation matters, companies known for welcoming returners build credibility as progressive, people-first employers. That brand halo attracts both temp and permanent talent.

 

Real-World Example

Take Aisling, a finance administrator from Galway. After seven years at home with her children, she joined a six-month temporary project role supporting the rollout of new accounting software for a semi-state company.

Within weeks, her organisational experience proved invaluable. She mastered the new platform, trained others, and extended her contract twice. By month ten, she was offered a permanent position.

Temporary work didn’t just reopen the door; it re-established her confidence and professional identity.

 

The Economics of Temporary Returnships

Temporary work isn’t just personally rewarding — it’s economically smart.

The OECD Employment Outlook 2023 highlights flexible labour as a key enabler of productivity in advanced economies. By using short-term contracts to re-absorb skilled labour, countries can offset demographic decline and skill mismatches.

For Ireland, where participation among women aged 30–44 remains lower than the EU average, the returner pipeline could ease chronic shortages in finance, admin, and healthcare support roles.

IBEC estimates that closing the gender participation gap could add €14 billion to national GDP by 2030 (IBEC Labour Market Report 2024).

Temporary contracts are one practical lever to achieve that — cost-efficient for employers, empowering for individuals.

 

Overcoming Barriers for Returners

Despite the clear advantages, challenges remain.

1. Confidence Gaps – Years out of the workforce can dent self-belief. Mentorship and structured onboarding help counter that.
2. Bias & Assumptions – Some hiring managers still undervalue career breaks. Awareness training and clear evaluation criteria reduce bias.
3. Digital Catch-Up – Rapid tech adoption means tools evolve quickly; refresher training (Excel, ERP systems, Teams) bridges the gap.
4. Short-Term Perception – Returners fear “only temporary” roles signal instability. Recruiters should position them as stepping stones, not placeholders.

Ireland now has several structured supports to address these challenges.

• The Women ReBOOT Programme, led by Technology Ireland DIGITAL Skillnet, helps women with prior experience in tech or digital sectors return to the workforce after a break. It offers skills refreshers, mentoring, and work placements with partner companies, with over 90% of participants moving into employment after completion.
• Broader return-to-work supports are also promoted through Citizens Information and Department of Enterprise, which maintain lists of incentives, grants, and schemes to help employers rehire career returners.

Together, these initiatives are building a bridge back to work for skilled professionals who might otherwise be overlooked.

 

Tips for Professionals Considering a Return via Temporary Work

1. Be transparent about your break. Hiring managers respect honesty and clarity more than a glossed-over gap.
2. Emphasise transferable skills. Communication, organisation, and stakeholder management remain invaluable.
3. Start small, learn fast. Even short assignments can snowball into lasting opportunities.
4. Stay networked. Reconnect with former colleagues, LinkedIn groups, and agencies specialising in flexible work.
5. Track outcomes. Treat each project as a case study of measurable achievements — vital for your CV narrative.

 

Tips for Employers Designing a Returner Strategy

• Map predictable gaps. Identify roles that regularly require cover — maternity leave, project surges, audits.
• Work with experienced recruitment partners. Agencies specialising in professional temporary staff understand how to balance skills, confidence, and culture fit.
• Onboard properly. Even short-term hires need context, logins, and introductions on day one.
• Offer mentoring. Pairing returners with established employees accelerates integration.
• Measure success. Track conversion rates, satisfaction, and retention. Use that data to refine your programme.

According to Chartered Accountants Ireland, well-designed flexible models not only attract returners but also retain existing employees seeking balance.

 

Beyond Inclusion: The Broader Workforce Benefit

This isn’t only a diversity story – it’s a productivity story.

Temporary work helps redistribute workload, reduce burnout, and fill bottlenecks quickly. When experienced professionals re-enter even part-time, their institutional knowledge strengthens teams and stabilises operations.

The European Commission’s 2023 Employment and Social Developments Report notes that integrating returners improves overall workforce resilience by “recycling skills that would otherwise be lost.”

 

The Human Element: Confidence, Identity, and Momentum

Career breaks can erode professional identity. Temporary work restores it quickly. Returners often describe the first few weeks back as transformative — a reminder that capability never truly leaves, it just needs context.

Managers who provide clear feedback, inclusion, and respect accelerate that transformation. And when returners thrive, teams gain role models who demonstrate resilience, adaptability, and renewed energy.

 

Conclusion: Why Temporary Work Deserves a Permanent Place

Temporary roles are reshaping how Ireland thinks about returning to work. They blend the best of both worlds — flexibility for individuals and agility for employers — while strengthening participation and inclusion in the national workforce.

They’re not a stopgap. They’re a smart, modern route back to sustainable, rewarding careers.

 

About Elevate Partners

At Elevate Partners, we connect Ireland’s leading employers with exceptional temporary, contract, and permanent professionals in finance, accounting, compliance, and business support.

Our team has extensive experience helping returners re-enter the workforce confidently through short-term or project-based roles that rebuild skills and open long-term opportunities.