Almost one in four of Ireland's unemployed aged between 25 and 34

Numbers on live register fell last month, says CSO 

Almost a quarter of Ireland's unemployed are aged between 25 and 34, despite the overall numbers on the live register falling 2.8% last month. 

Almost a quarter of Ireland's unemployed are aged between 25 and 34, despite the overall numbers on the live register falling 2.8% last month. 

The seasonally adjusted live register total for May 2025 was 165,700 people, down by 4,700 people or 2.8% from April 2025, the Central Statistics Office said on Monday.

The 25-34 years cohort was the age group with the largest number unemployed, making up 38,472 people or 23.7% of the total.

There were 19,050 people under the age of 25 were on the live register, accounting for 11.7% of all claimants.  

"The number of people on the live register for one year or more in May 2025 was 55,781, which was 5,574 fewer people (-9.1%) than a year earlier," said CSO statistician Conor Delves. "There were 106,488 people on the live register for less than one year, which was 65.6% of the total number of people on the live register.”

The counties that recorded the largest percentage decreases in numbers on the live register in the 12 months to May 2025 were Kerry, down 1,183 people (-18.3%) and Clare, down 640 people (-15.2%). Dublin recorded the largest percentage increase, up 1,257 people (+2.9%). In Cork, there were 13,233 unemployed, down 616 from April 2025, a drop of 4.4%.

The unadjusted live register total stood at 162,269 people for May 2025, of which 56% were male and 71.6% were Irish. There were 12,059 people benefitting from the EU's Temporary Protection Directive included in the live register figures for May 2025, a decrease of 380 people from April 2025.