The number of people signing on the Live Register fell by 2,600 (0.7 per cent) last month as conditions in the labour market continue to improve.

Figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show the seasonally adjusted register for May stood 347,100, representing an annual decline of 11.1 per cent or 43,500

The Live Register, which includes casual and part-time workers, has now fallen for 41 consecutive months.

The figures for May show a monthly decrease of 2,500 in the number of men signing on, while the number of women decreased by 200.

Earlier this week, the CSO began publishing a new series of monthly unemployment estimates, which put the State’s jobless rate at 9.8 per cent for May.

The estimates replace the Standardised Unemployment Rate (SUR) as the definitive measure of monthly unemployment, which used to be published alongside the Live Register numbers.

The CSO’s figures show the number of long-term claimants on register, those out of work for longer than a year, was 161,884, accounting for 46.8 per cent of the total.

They also indicated there were 88,398 people on Government-backed activation schemes in April, which are not counted as part of the monthly Live Register.

This represented an increase of 2,809 (3.3 per cent) from the previous year, when there were 85,589 people in activation programmes.

ISME, the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association, called on Government to prioritise tackling the high number of long-term unemployed.

"There are currently 161,884 long-term unemployed persons in the country an increase of 3396 on April. Most of these are struggling to find employment and need help to upskill themselves for today's labour market," Isme's Mark Fielding said.

“ Meanwhile, there are those who are simply unwilling to work or to participate in the workforce activation schemes and harsh measures must be strictly enforced for those who refuse to participate,” he said.

“The inept enforcement and over-generous nature of the welfare system is aiding the malingerer.”

“ Eliminating the number of long-term unemployed must become a policy priority for Government and the current range of activation measures must be continuously reviewed and rigorously implemented,” he added.