Unemployment under 400,000 for first time since 2009
The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show the seasonally adjusted live register fell by 2,500 in February to 398,300 — the lowest total since May 2009. This represents an annual decline of 30,807, or 7.2%.
It is also the 20th month in a row where a decrease in the number of jobless has been recorded. The standardised unemployment rate in February was 11.9%, down from 12% in January — its lowest rate in four years.
Commenting on the figures, economist with Merrion Stockbrokers Alan McQuaid said the jobless rate has probably peaked and predicted unemployment to continue to fall over the next year.
“The unemployment rate remains the key indicator as far as the economy is concerned and steady progress is being made in terms of bringing it down.”
“Although the recovery path for the labour market won’t entirely be smooth, we do think that the level of unemployment will continue to fall over the course of 2014.
“It does now appear as though the jobless rate has peaked, and we are looking for it to fall back to 11.5% on average this year from 13.1% in 2013, which itself was the lowest level since 2009,” he said.
Mr McQuaid said that while emigration was a contributory factor to the falling numbers on the live register, there was “clear evidence” that employment conditions in most sectors were improving in recent months.
However, Bríd O’Brien of the Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed said the issue of long-term unemployed still needed to be addressed.
“Looking behind these headline figures a number of features are striking.
“In February there were 180,496 people on the register for more than a year and though this represents a drop of 4.7% on the same month last year, it is double the figure at the end of 2009.
“Clearly, the challenge of long-term unemployment remains to be addressed,” she said.
Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton described the figures as very encouraging but said more needed to be done to bring down the unemployment rate.
“An 11.9% unemployment rate is still far too high, and that is why, this year and beyond, my absolute priority will be to ensure that the Live Register falls substantially further, with full employment the central target,” she said.
