Slight fall in February sees unemployment drop to post-pandemic low of 4.3%

In annual terms, unemployment has fallen by 0.5% since February 2022

Unemployment fell by a further 0.1% in February, with the seasonally adjusted rate of just 4.3% reflecting an additional 1,600 people joining the workforce since January 2023.

The post-pandemic low comes despite increased business uncertainty amid high inflation and rising interest rates.

The latest figures from the CSO reveal the unemployment rate fell from an unchanged 4.4% in January, with male unemployment also falling marginally to just 4%.

The rate of unemployment among females remained unchanged from the previous month at 4.7%. Overall, there was a decrease of 5,700 in the seasonally adjusted number of persons unemployed in February 2023 when compared with a year earlier.

Youth unemployment also fell in February, with the portion of those aged 15 to 24 out of the workforce dropping from 10.3% to 10.2%. Excluding young people, the unemployment rate stood at just 3.4% in February.

In annual terms, unemployment has fallen by 0.5% since February 2022, with CSO statistician, John Mullane explaining, "Unemployment is down from a revised rate of 4.6% in February 2022. The rate of 4.3% in February 2023 was lower than the pre-pandemic level of 4.8% recorded in February 2020."

According to Indeed Economist, Jack Kennedy, the CSO findings come amid "optimistic, albeit still cautious, forecasts for the Irish economy based on falling energy prices, resilient global demand and easing inflationary momentum."

"In the meantime, we can expect the Irish labour market to remain tight with employment continuing to grow. Indeed’s data continues to show employers actively hiring, with the level of Irish job postings on Indeed up 59.5% on 24 February 2023 compared to 1 February 2020."