Unemployment rate up to 6.3% in third quarter

Ireland's official unemployment rate increased from 5.4% to 6.3% in the past three months, according to figures published by the CSO today.

The latest Quarterly National Household Survey shows that 160,600 people are now officially out of work.

Male unemployment increased by 37,400 (58.3%) in the third quarter of the year, while female unemployment was up 16,000 (37.1%).

The largest decline in employment levels has been in the construction sector, where the total number of workers has fallen by 25,900 (9.1%) in the last 12 months.