Unemployment revised down to new post-crash low of 7.5%

Ireland’s unemployment rate has been revised down to a new post-crash low of 7.5 per cent.

The latest official figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) suggest the number of unemployed people in the State fell by 34,200 to 164,400 in the 12 months to October.

The updated numbers, contained in the CSO’s Quarterly National Household Survey, also show the number of people working in the State has reached its highest level in eight years.

Despite the uncertain economic backdrop, employment on an annual basis increased by 2.9 per cent, or 57,500, in the third quarter of 2016, bringing the total employment to 2.04 million.

This was the highest level of employment recorded since the fourth quarter of 2008, but still below the 2.16 million peak reached in the first quarter of the same year.

The CSO’s survey reveals employment has now increased for 16 successive quarters and that most of the employment growth is in the full-time category, which rose by 44,800 or 2.9 per cent year on year.

Significantly, the quarterly growth in employment appears to be untrammelled by Brexit.

The figures show employment grew by 0.7 per cent or 13,500 in the third quarter following growth of 0.9 per cent and 0.8 per cent in the previous two quarters.

Construction sector

Employment also rose in 12 of the 14 employment sectors of the economy with the largest increase recorded in the accommodation and food services sector, which expanded by 13,400 or 9.6 per cent.

The construction sector, which suffered the biggest sectoral decline during the crash, saw employment rise by 9,300 or 7.3 per cent.

The largest decline during the period was in the administration and support services sector, where employment fell by 2,000 or 2.9 per cent.

“We’re going up on a more shallow slope than we declined down at, hence we haven’t returned to figures that are comparable to peak employment,” senior CSO statistician Brian Ring said.

Nonetheless he said the latest figures were consistent with a year-on-year growth in employment of 3 per cent.

Mr Ring also noted the continuing downward trend in long-term unemployment, which fell from 5 per cent to 4.2 per cent, allaying fears that structural unemployment may become a feature of the economy.

Encouraged

Minister for Jobs Mary Mitchell O’Connor welcomed the latest survey, noting the figures put the Government on track to eclipse its target of creating an extra 50,000 jobs this year.

“I am particularly encouraged to see figures showing the vast majority of new jobs are being created outside of Dublin as one of my key priorities remains keeping a focus on job growth in all regions around Ireland,” she said.

Alan McQuaid of Merrion Stockbrokers said: “Although emigration has been a factor to some degree in keeping unemployment down since the financial crisis, the labour market has improved dramatically over the past two/three years, reflecting the strengthening of the economic recovery.”

He also noted the most recent migration estimates showed net inward migration of 3,100 in the year to April 2016 as against net outward migration of 11,600 in 2015, and the first positive figure since 2009.