News & Events

Tánaiste and Minister Nash welcome continuing rise in numbers of people at work

Unemployment rate now stands at 10.4% according to latest Quarterly National Household Survey

The Tánaiste Joan Burton TD and Minister for Business and Employment Ged Nash TD have welcomed the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office which show that 3,300 new jobs were created per month in 2014, with unemployment falling by more than 15% over the course of the year.

The number of people in work has increased by 95,000 since the depths of the crisis, with an increase of 39,600 last year alone, according to the Quarterly National Household Survey (QNHS).

Total employment now stands at 1,938,900 - the highest level in five years. Unemployment now stands at 10.4%, down from a crisis peak of 15.1%.   

The figures demonstrate that the economic recovery continues to strengthen with employers hiring more people on a full-time basis as business confidence improves.

The Tánaiste said: “These figures demonstrate the continuing success of the Government’s twin-track approach to creating jobs and helping people return to work. The Action Plan for Jobs, overseen the Department of Jobs, is helping to accelerate the transition to a sustainable, jobs-rich economy. Pathways to Work, overseen by my Department, is ensuring that as many as possible of those newly created jobs go to people on the Live Register. While unemployment remains too high and we still have much work to do, I am particularly encouraged by the fact that the vast majority of people returning to work are returning to full-time jobs, and that long-term unemployment has fallen to 5.7%.”

Minister Nash said, ““The QNHS shows that full-time employment is continuing to grow – up 2.7% in the past year; while part-time employment is down 2.3%.  This shows that the Government’s focus on creating decent, sustainable jobs is working.” 

“Looking at the sectors where we are seeing most gains, construction has seen a very welcome growth of 12.6% in employment in one year.  Financial and insurance services are up 4.9%, while the retail sector, which I have responsibility for, has also seen modest growth of 2.3%.” 

ENDS

For more information contact Paul O’Brien 087 2847468/ Deirdre Grant 086 0484 279