Pharma, Life Sciences & Medical Device

In 2026, the pharmaceutical sector continued to exhibit a male-dominated workforce. Male contractors accounted for 78% of the contractor population, representing an increase from 73% in 2025. Female representation has declined, dropping to 21% this year, marking a significant drop in female participation rate in the sector since the high of 29% in 2024.

The age profile shows a slight restructuring towards mid-career and experienced professionals. The share of contractors aged 30–39 has fallen by 8 percentage points from 36% in 2025 to 28% in 2026. Contractors above 40 represent 60% of the workforce. The average contract length in Pharma has remained steady at 15 months, in line with last year.

In 2026, the gender profile of the Life Sciences sector remained broadly comparable with previous years. Male representation accounted for 79% of contractors, slightly higher than 75% in 2025, while female participation stood at 21%. Overall, the gender distribution continues to reflect a predominantly male contractor workforce, consistent with patterns observed in previous years. The age profile of contractors shows some notable changes in 2026. The proportion aged 29 and below decreased from 16% in 2025 to 3% in 2026. At the same time, the share of contractors aged 30 to 39 increased from 31% to 41%, while those aged 40 to 49 rose from 23% to 32%. The 50 to 59 age group also grew, increasing from 15% to 20%. In contrast, the proportion of contractors aged 60 and over declined from 15% to 4%. Overall, the 2026 distribution indicates a greater concentration of contractors in mid-career age groups compared with the previous year.

The average contract length in the Life Sciences industry remains stable at 15 months in both 2025 and 2026. This is slightly higher than the average of 14 months recorded in 2024.

The average daily rate has fallen slightly to €513, down from €529 in 2025 and significantly below the highs of 2023 and 2024. While contract duration remains stable, this rate softening may suggest budget caution or increased contractor availability in this sector compared with recent years.

In 2026, the Medical Device sector remains predominantly male, with men representing 79% of contractors, up slightly from 75% in 2025. There is a shift in the age profile of the sector this year. In 2025, 23% of the contractors surveyed were aged 29 or below, but this has decreased to 17% in 2026. Meanwhile, the percentage of contractors between 40–59 years of age has increased. This might suggest an increasing reliance on experienced contractors compared to the new entrants.

The average contract length in the Medical Device sector remains at 13 months in 2026. The average daily rate increased to €432 in 2026, up from €397 in 2025. This increase comes more as a correction to the sharp decline between 2024 and 2025, when rates fell from €492 to €397. The rise in 2026 may suggest early signs of recovery in daily rates within the sector.

Average daily rates in Pharma increased from €486 in 2025 to €530 in 2026, a rise of around 9%. This is the highest rate recorded across the six-year period and represents an increase of 17.3% since 2021. In the Life Sciences industry, rates declined from €529 in 2025 to €513 in 2026, a decrease of 3%. Rates remain almost 12% below the peak recorded in 2022. Medical Device industry rates rose from €397 in 2025 to €432 in 2026, an increase of 8.8%. However, rates still remain comparable to the rates in 2021.

The rate distribution shows a clear upward shift in 2026. In 2025, 42% of contractors earned between €300 and €499 per day. This has declined to 38% in 2026, while the share earning €500 or more has increased from 41% to 53%. Within the higher bands, 22% of contractors now earn between €500 and €599, 27% earn between €600 and €999, and 4% earn more than €1000 per day. Overall, the distribution indicates a movement toward the middle to upper rate brackets in 2026, suggesting an improvement in contractor rates.

Overall, for the whole pharmaceutical sector, average daily rates have strengthened in 2026 for both genders. Daily rates for males rose 5% from €495 in 2025, to €521 in 2026. Female rates increased 10% from €439 in 2025, to €485 in 2026. This may be primarily driven by contractors in the pharma industry and medical device industry, as for life science industry, the rates have declined. The gender pay gap narrowed from 11% in 2025 to 6.9% in 2026. This is the smallest gender pay gap observed since the research started in 2021 and reflects improving pay parity.

In 2026, Pharma, Life Sciences, and Medical Device contractors are less optimistic about the sector compared to 2025. In 2025, 44% of respondents agreed that contract availability had increased over the previous 12 months. This year, only 32% of respondents agreed that contract availability had increased over the previous12 months, while 24% felt that the availability of contracts over the last 12 months had decreased, as opposed to 11% in 2025, perhaps signalling a growing concern that the market is tightening.

Expectations for the year ahead have also reduced. Just 33% expect contract availability to increase in the next 12 months (down from 38% in 2025), and the proportion expecting a decline has more than doubled from 10% in 2025 to 21% in 2026, reflecting increased caution. The expectation for increases in daily rates for the next 12 months remains positive with 53% anticipating higher daily rates (up slightly from 51% in 2025)

Only 17% foresee more working days in 2026 down from 21% in 2025, with 76% expecting no change, suggesting contractors are anticipating steady rather than increased demand in working days over the next 12 months. Confidence in the contracting sector’s 3–5‑year outlook has declined. Expectations of growth in the next 3-5 years have fallen from 54% in the last year to 48% this year, while those forecasting a decline in the contracting sector have risen from 12% to 17%. The performance of the Irish economy shows the sharpest drop, just 36% of respondents expect improvement in the performance of Irish economy in 2026 compared to 2025, and 25% expect conditions to worsen. While contractors remain confident in the sector’s long‑term potential they are becoming more cautious amid broader economic uncertainty.