Irish employment rises 0.8% to 2.8 million in Q2, CSO reports

Ireland's employment figures for the second quarter show a notable increase, pushing the total number of employed individuals past 2.8 million. This growth of 0.8% is attributed to a rising participation from older age groups and an influx of workers from around the world, according to the Central Statistics Office's latest Labour Force Survey.

The survey also revealed shifts within the workforce demographics. While older cohorts, particularly those aged 45 to 54, saw significant gains with an additional 28,600 people entering the labor force, younger age groups experienced a decline. The largest drop was observed among 35 to 44 year olds, with 10,100 fewer individuals in this bracket.

Despite the overall employment increase, the national employment rate for individuals aged 15 to 64 slightly decreased by 0.4 percentage points to 74.3%. Concurrently, the unemployment rate climbed to 5.1%, an increase of 0.3 percentage points from the previous year. The number of unemployed persons grew by 7.2% to 151,000, with a notable rise in female unemployment contributing to this figure.

“

There's been a positive growth in the labour force for older age cohorts, with the largest increase among 45 to 54 year olds.