Mixed bag in latest QNHS figures
7 Dec 2004
The Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed believes that the QNHS results for Qtr. 3 contain some good and bad news on the employment front. Employment has risen by 57,000 in the year and the national employment rate has increased by 1.7% to 67.2%. While the actual unemployment numbers and rate has increased from the previous quarter, the adjusted unemployment rate is falling. On the other hand, youth unemployment has risen steeply since 2003, the number of long-term unemployed has gone up to 28,000 and there are further signs of regional disparities in unemployment rates (the rate in the South East has risen to 6.2%).
“They are like the curate’s egg, good in parts,” said Mr. Eric Conroy, General Secretary commenting on the latest figures. “We welcome the general improvements in employment and unemployment which echo recent months on the Live Register. However, we are very concerned at the sharp increase in youth unemployment. The rate for 15-19 years is 14.4% and that for 20-24 years is 8.5%, which are several multiples of the national average. We hope this is not an echo of the Celtic Tiger where young people took up dead-end jobs during economic prosperity and did not complete their education, leading to higher risks of being unemployed during their lifetime.
The INOU is concerned at the upward rise in long-term unemployment when time is becoming short in terms of meeting the government target of eliminating this by 2007.
“As the INOU has always said, we are nowhere near full employment while the scourge of long term unemployment exists in such numbers”, said Mr. Conroy. In addition, regional unemployment disparities are being exacerbated with increased employment in Dublin and Mid-East, offset by increased unemployment in rural areas. “Balanced regional development, including implementing the full provisions of the National Spatial Strategy, is vital to ensure we do not have a two-tier geographical Ireland, with plenty of jobs in Dublin and its hinterland and a wasteland of economic inactivity in other parts of the country”, added Mr. Conroy.
