Young males and migrants worst hit by job losses

YOUNG males and migrant workers are being worst hit by the jobs crisis, with those in financial services maintaining employment despite the collapse of that industry.

Although unemployment is affecting all sectors of society, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) Quarterly National Household Survey for the first three months of 2009 shows that young men without third-level qualifications are continuing to lose their jobs at a much faster rate than others.

There were 222,800 people unemployed in the first quarter of 2009, an increase of 113,400 in the year. Male unemployment increased by 85,300, with the number of unemployed females increasing 28,200.

The largest decline in employment was recorded in the construction sector where the numbers employed fell by 72,200 (-28.6%) over the year.

The next largest annual decreases in employment were recorded in the wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, which was down 30,300, and the industry sector, which fell 19,600.

The massive decline in employment of 7.5% over the 12 months to the end of March 2009, is much greater than in most other developed economies, with the US experiencing a 3% fall in employment and a 1.3% average reduction in the rest of the eurozone

The figures also indicate a significant shift towards a part-time workforce.

The numbers in full-time employment decreased by 176,200 over the year while part-time employment increased by 17,700. However, in financial services, the move to part-time work has effected just 1,000 workers.

The lack of jobs has seen the return of large scale emigration, largely the result of migrant workers leaving, with the estimated foreign-national population aged over 15 standing at 462,300 earlier this year, a decrease of 20,800 or 4.3%.

A further 49,400 were unemployed, an increase of 26,000 in the year to the end of March 2009.

Fine Gael enterprise spokesman Leo Varadkar warned: “The social consequences of a return to the mass unemployment of the 1980s would drag Ireland down for decades.”

The Construction Industry Federation said the real state of the building sector may have become much worse since the CSO statistics were complied between January and March.

In a statement, the CIF said: “The CSO figures state that 179,900 people were directly employed in construction in the first quarter of 2009, a decline of some 36,400 over the quarter.

“This, however, only reveals the situation four months ago and doesn’t give the most up-to-date accurate account.

“Unless employment preserving policies are put in place, CIF predicts further job losses in all parts of the construction sector.”

There were 2,188,400 people in the labour force in the first quarter of 2009, an annual decrease of 2% equal to 45,100.

All of the decline was attributable to a falloff in participation in the labour market of more than 46,000 people.