Oliver Mangan: Job numbers continue to rise despite Big Tech layoffs

Labour market experiencing very strong growth, with the labour force expanding by 44,000 in the first three months of the year

Employment in the tech sector is 3% higher than a year earlier despite layoffs. Picture: Brian Lawless

The CSO published the Labour Force Survey results for the opening quarter of 2023 last week. There is not much evidence in the data of a slowdown in the Irish economy from the breakneck pace seen in 2021 and 2022. 

Indeed, the labour market remains characterised by very rapid growth. The labour force expanded by 1.6%, or 44,000, in the quarter. It now stands at 2.73m, up 87,000 from a year earlier, an increase of 3.3%.