Paddy Power to create more than 600 jobs

BOOKMAKER Paddy Power is to create 610 jobs in Dublin to support the company’s international online expansion.

The jobs – which are in ecommerce, technology, social media, quantitative research, risk management and online marketing – will be filled by the end of 2015, the company said this morning.

The new jobs will bring total employment at Paddy Power in Ireland to 2,783. The bookmaker, which has hired 189 people since April, is planning to accelerate expansion into overseas betting markets.

Paddy Power chief executive Patrick Kennedy said: “We’ve built a position of what we think is global leadership in tomorrow’s technology. So, in mobile and social media, we built the business out internationally.

“As the global market moves more and more online and we’ve invested early in these areas of ecommerce, I think we’re very well positioned for that and that’s the source of today’s announcement,” he said.

The group's online businesses, paddypower.comin Europe and Sportsbet in Australia, accounted for €97 million of the €119.5 million that its operations generated last year.

It has spent €6 million on a move into Italy market, which was launched ahead of the European Championships this summer. Early last month the group said that it had about 4 per cent of the market.

The group has also applied for licences to operate in Nevada in the US.

Meanwhile, bookmakers say that the Government’s failure to extend evening opening hours in the winter months will force the lay-off of 500 workers in the Republic.

The Government’s proposed Betting Amendment Bill 2012, would allow bookie shops to stay open until 10pm for 12 months of the year, if it were passed.

Currently, they can only stay open late during the summer months, April to September, and must close at 6pm in winter, except on Fridays. Bookies in the North and Britain remain open until 10pm all year round.

The Independent Bookmakers’ Association (IBA) says that the reintroduction of the 6pm closing time will result in 500 staff hired to work in betting shops over the summer being let go.

As some elements of the new legislation need European Commission (EC) approval, the Oireachtas is unlikely to pass it before next year. According to IBA chairwoman Sharon Byrne, there needs to be “immediate action” on extended winter opening hours.

“As this aspect of the legislation does not require EC ratification, we are calling on the Government to implement the proposed extended winter opening hours as a matter of urgency to protect these 500 jobs,” she said in a statement.