Youth unemployment rises for eighth consecutive month to 14%

The monthly figures for 2025 shows the ongoing softening of the labour market has resulted in a gradual increase in the monthly unemployment level from 4.5% in the early part of the year to rates exceeding 5% from September onwards. Picture: Andy Gibson.

Unemployment in December remained steady despite another rise in the number of young people out of work.

New figures released on Wednesday by the Central Statistics Office found that seasonally adjusted unemployment was unchanged in December at 5%, but was up compared to the 4.5% rate recorded in the same month in 2024.

This reflects an increase of 19,700 in the seasonally adjusted number of people unemployed in December when compared with the same month in 2024.

The monthly figures for 2025 shows the ongoing softening of the labour market has resulted in a gradual increase in the monthly unemployment level from 4.5% in the early part of the year to rates exceeding 5% from September onwards.

Among males, unemployment rose marginally in the month, increasing from 5% to 5.1%, while unemployment among females fell by 0.1%, coming in at 4.9% in December.

Meanwhile, the monthly unemployment rate continues to rise for young people aged between 15 and 24, with the youth unemployment rate climbing to 14%, up from a revised rate of 13.7% in the previous November.

The youth unemployment rate has increased every month since May 2025, and on an annual basis, has risen from just 11.8%.

Almost 8,000 more young people are now unemployed compared to December 2024, figures from the CSO show.

For those aged 25 and over, the monthly unemployment rate was unchanged from the previous month at 3.8%.

Overall, 148,700 people were unemployed when seasonally adjusted in December, compared to 147,300 in the previous month.

"As previously pointed out, it was predicted that the unemployment rate would increase to close to 5% by the end of 2025 before steadying. The focus now will be on whether it does settle at this level in the coming months or continues to increase gradually as the year develops," said senior economist at online hiring platform Indeed, Jack Kennedy.

"Despite concerns in relation to recent increases in youth unemployment, Ireland continues to benefit from high levels of labour market participation and an expanding workforce driven by inward migration," Mr Kennedy added, noting that relative to the EU, Ireland continues to have one of the lowest unemployment rates in the EU. 

"Estimates for 2026, however, suggest the Irish economy will continue to remain resilient and employment growth will stay strong," he said.