The standardised unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 per cent in June as seasonally adjusted figures showed 100 less people signing on the live register.

The standardised rate was down from 4.4 per cent a year ago and 4.7 per cent in June 2003. The figure is derived from the number of people signing on the live register.

The register does not measure unemployment per se because it reflects the number of part-time, seasonal and casual workers who sign on. However, the standardised rate in June was the same as the seasonally adjusted official unemployment rate in the period from December last year to February.

New Central Statistics Office figures show that the unadjusted live register figure rose by 8,474 or 5.6 per cent last month to 159,300, reflecting increases in all regions. The biggest increase - 3.5 per cent - was in the mid-west region, comprising Clare, Limerick City and County and North Tipperary. The biggest county increases were in Co Roscommon, where the live register rose by 10.1 per cent, and in Co Limerick, where the register rose by 9.6 per cent.

Labour's spokesman for enterprise, trade and employment, Brendan Howlin TD, said the overall employment picture was still impressive but pointed out that the number on the live register was almost 20,000 greater than in June 2001. "During the past few weeks we have seen announcements of significant job losses at companies such as Tayto and Terenure Printers. This appears to be part of a pattern where jobs are being lost in the traditional manufacturing sector and replaced by jobs - often less well paid - in the services sector," he said.

The Central Statistics Office said that 8,143 men and 12,571 women signed on last month as casual or part-time workers.