The gainfully occupied population grew by 3.5 per cent in the second quarter when compared to the corresponding quarter of 2015, the NSO said today, quoting the Labour Force Survey. 

Total employment stood at 191,384 accounting for more than half the population aged 15 and over. Unemployed persons stood at 9,822 (2.7 per cent) while inactive persons totalled 163,750 (44.9 per cent).

The activity rate was estimated at 69.1 per cent with the highest rate recorded among persons aged 25-54.

On average, full-timers worked 41.6 hours while part-timers worked 22.4 hours per week.

AVERAGE SALARY RISES TO €17,109

The average annual basic salary of employees for the second quarter of 2016 was estimated at €17,109 from €16,406 in the same period last year. The highest basic salary was recorded in the information and communication sector. Average annual salaries varied from €28,858 among managers to €11,864 among persons employed in elementary occupations. 

The unemployment rate for the second quarter of 2016, stood at 4.9 per cent. The largest share of unemployed persons was recorded among persons aged 25 years and over. Among the unemployed, 42.1 per cent stated that they had been seeking work for at least 12 months.

The number of inactive persons stood at 163,750, with 41.5 per cent attributing their inactivity to retirement or the uptake of early retirement.

58.2 per cent of the 15 plus population had attained a low level of education This included persons with less than five ordinary level or equivalent qualifications. Among the employed population 24.6 per cent had a tertiary level education.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.