Young female workers paid 31% less than male counterparts 

The median weekly earnings for new entrants to the workforce in 2024 was €428.58

Across all 13 economic sectors, women who were aged between 15 and 24, who had just entered the workforce, out-earned men in same situation in just three.

Young female workers who were new entrants to the workforce during 2024 were being paid 31% less when compared to their male counterparts, new data from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) shows.

According to the data, the median weekly earnings for people aged between 15 and 24 across all economic sectors during 2024 stood at €266.43. However, when it is broken down by gender, men in this demographic earned €310.28 a week compared to women, who received €226.14.

Median weekly earnings among new entrant employments rose by 6.3% to €428.58 in 2024https://t.co/hyJo5iTl8J#CSOIreland #Ireland #Earnings #LabourCosts #LabourMarket #BusinessStatistics #Business #BusinessNews #IrishBusiness pic.twitter.com/Oi6ylbkySt

— Central Statistics Office Ireland (@CSOIreland) November 10, 2025

Across all 13 economic sectors, women in this demographic out-earned men in just three.

The gender pay difference is even more stark when it expanded to all new entrants to the workforce in 2024. Overall, female new entrants to the workforce in 2024 were paid 37% less than their male counterparts.

Median weekly earnings among new entrant male workers was €489.08, compared to female new entrants at €356.88.

Earnings for men were higher in 12 of the 13 economic sectors, with the greatest differences seen in construction, at 60.8% higher, administrative and support services at 45.1% higher, and accommodation and food services sector at 32.6% higher.

The human health and social work sector was the only economic sector in which new entrant employments among females received higher median pay, at €584.44 a week, compared with their male counterparts at €553.99.

Overall, new entrants to the workforce during 2024 accounted for 8% of total employment during the year, with just over 40% aged between 15 and 24. Irish nationalities accounted for 42.5% of these new entrants — of which just over two-thirds were aged 15 to 24 — with people from India accounting for 9% and people from Ukraine accounting for 5.1%.

The median weekly earnings for new-entrant employees last year rose by 6.3% to €428.58, compared to 2023.

The minimum wage increased on January 1, 2024, by €1.40 to €12.70 per hour for those aged 20 years-old and over. However, workers aged under the age of 18 could be paid as little as €8.89, with those aged 18 being paid a minimum wage of €10.16, and those aged 19 being paid a minimum of €11.43.

The accommodation and food services sector saw the highest proportion of new tenants, with 19.4% of all employments during last year being new entrants. The area with the lowest proportion of new entrants was public administration and defence at 1.8%.

The highest median weekly earnings among new-entrant employees were recorded in the information and communication sector at €1,013.62, followed by employments in professional, scientific and technical activities sector at €640.88, and the industry sector at €580.73.

The lowest median weekly earnings among new-entrant employees in 2024 were recorded for the arts, entertainment, recreation and other services at €264.190, followed by the accommodation and food services sector at €285.55.

The CSO also included data looking into whether new entrants in 2023 either stayed in that employment or moved elsewhere and the impact that had on their earnings.

More than half, 55%, of the 2023 new-entrant cohort were recorded in the same primary employment in 2024, while a further 21.4% were recorded in a different primary employment.

For the 2023 new-entrant cohort, the annual increase in median weekly earnings tended to be least among stayers, 13.2%, rising from €450.75 in 2023 to €510.11 in 2024. 

However, those who changed employment recorded an increase of 40%, from €346.15 in 2023 to €484.71 in 2024.