Google to hire 500 staff in Dublin

Google will recruit more than 500 new staff for its Dublin headquarters over the next 12 to 18 months.

Many of the new jobs are related to the expansion of Google's online ad sales and operations team, which is based in Ireland.

Irish minister for enterprise, trade and employment Micheál Martin TD said in a statement: "[Google's] investment here in Dublin is a huge vote of confidence in our knowledge economy and in our young, educated workforce."

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John Herlihy, Google's European director of online sales and operations, added that Dublin "has an integral role to play in our international business as we continue to localise our products and solutions for our users and advertisers".

Dublin is the headquarters for all of Google's business in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region. Opened in October 2004, it is the biggest Google operation outside the US.

The news confirms last year's commitment from Google to expand its European operations over the next three years. The new jobs, which will be advertised on the company's website almost immediately, will take the total headcount in Dublin to around 1,300.