Numbers in employment rises to new high of 2.55 million

The number of people in employment has increased by 8.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2022, bringing the number in employment to more than 2.5 million, according to the latest figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The number in employments increased to 2,554,600, which is the highest employment rate since the series began in 1998.

There were 119,900 persons classified as unemployed in the second quarter of 2022 with an associated Unemployment Rate of 4.5 per cent for those aged 15-74 years.

The number of absences from work, such as temporary layoffs, family leave or holidays, during the reference week was 187,000, an decrease compared to a peak of 468,500 absences recorded in that period in 2020.

The number of persons in employment increased by 8.7% to 2,554,600 in the year to Q2 2022https://t.co/NkmPoegG7i#CSOIreland #Ireland #LabourForceSurvey #LabourForce #Households #Families #IrishFamilies #IrishHouseholds #LabourMarket #Jobs #Employment #Unemployment pic.twitter.com/xdM5zBUcvA

— Central Statistics Office Ireland (@CSOIreland) August 25, 2022

Up to the second quarter of 2022, there was a 9.4 per cent rise in the number of hours worked per week. This equated to an extra 7.1 million hours bringing the number of hours worked per week to a record high of 83 million.

Sam Scriven, Statistician, said: “The number of persons aged 15-89 years in employment increased by 205,500 or 8.7 per cent to 2,554,600 persons in the year to Q2 2022. The unadjusted employment rate for persons aged 15-64 years was 73.5 per cent.

“Employment increased in the year to Q2 2022 across most economic sectors with the largest increase in the Accommodation & Food Service (+39.2 per cent or +47,300) sector. However, employment in this sector at 168,200 remains below the Q2 2019 level of 180,800.

“The number of absences from work during the reference week in Q2 2022 declined by 15.3 per cent to 187,200. This, together with an increase of 8.7 per cent in employment, resulted in an increase of 9.4 per cent or 7.1 million more hours worked per week to a record 83 million hours per week in Q2 2022.

“The impact on hours worked varied across the different economic sectors. The number of hours worked in Q2 2022 per week was higher than a year ago in almost all sectors. The 4.8 million hours worked per week in the Accommodation & Food Services sector, while up from Q2 2020 (1.2 million), remains below the pre-pandemic (Q2 2019) figure of 5.4 million.”