THE NUMBER of people signing on the Live Register has reached 12.2 per cent of the workforce for the first time since 1995, Central Statistics Office (CSO) figures show.

The seasonally adjusted figures show that 10,500 extra people signed on the Live Register in July, bringing the total number to 423,400.

Unadjusted figures show that the number of new claimants in July was 17,143, an annual increase of just under 83 per cent.

The 12.2 per cent unemployment rate compares with an 11.9 per cent figure in June and is more than three times the average unemployment rate in 2007 – the height of the economic boom – when unemployment averaged 4 per cent.

But although the number of people signing on has been steadily increasing since the beginning of 2008, yesterday’s figures show that the rate of increase in unemployment has slowed for the sixth consecutive month.

The net weekly increase in people joining the Live Register in July was 2,100, compared with a figure of 3,000 in the previous month. Yesterday’s figures also show that July saw the lowest rate of increase in the numbers joining the register since September 2008. According to Davy Stockbroker, the decrease in the rate of job losses is a “sign that the economy is gradually stabilising”. Chief economist at Davy Research Rossa White estimates that unemployment will exceed 13 per cent by year-end, reaching a peak of just below 15 per cent towards the end of 2010.

Ulster Bank also noted that the Live Register trends “continue to improve”. It said the Governments prediction of 440,000 people on the Live Register for 2009, “now looks overly pessimistic” given the moderation in the pace of job losses in recent months. It estimated that the average for the year will be closer to 420,000, or 12 per cent for the year as a whole. Yesterday’s figures also show that for the first time this year, the number of women outnumbered the number of men, with 5,500 females and 5,100 males signing on last month, taking account of seasonal adjustments.

Unemployment among the under-25s continues to rise. According to the CSO data, more than one in five on the live register is under 25. Over 43,000 people in that age category have joined the Live Register in the past year.

Separate earnings figures released yesterday by the CSO revealed that wages in the financial sector fell by 11.1 per cent in the 12-month period up to the end of the first quarter of 2009. The drop was due to a 65 per cent fall in “irregular earnings” or bonuses, although earnings excluding bonuses rose by 5.4 per cent from €26.17 to €27.58 per hour.

In the industrial sector hourly earnings inclusive of bonuses rose 5.9 per cent from €20.82 to €22.05 per hour, while earnings excluding bonuses were up 6.5 per cent year on year. The figures also showed that the number of people employed in the industrial sector fell by 15,700 from 231,100 to 215,400 during the period.

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