On December 2nd 2022, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) released the Live Register figures for November 2022. There were 180,884 people on the Live Register, an increase of 16,258 people on the same month last year. Looking at the Register from a gender and age perspective: women account for 46.6% of the Live Register and young people account for 10.4%.
The number of people on the Live Register for less than one year increased by 32% to 119,203 people and of this figure: women account for 49% and young people 12.5%. 61,681 people were on the Register for more than a year: a decrease of 12,549 people in comparison to November 2021. Looking at this part of the Register from a gender and age perspective: women account for 41.7% and young people 6.5%.
A year ago, people on the Register for more than one year accounted for 45% of the number of people on the Live Register, in November 2022 this percentage had dropped to 34%. However, the CSO notes that “Taking the duration time on the PUP into account sees the proportion of short-term recipients drop to 62.3% and the proportion of long-term recipients increase to 37.7%.”
In Table A1 information is provided on the number of people ‘availing of Activation Programmes’. These figures always lag a month behind, and so in October 2022 there were 36,365 participants, 2,544 fewer people than October 2021. The number of people participating on education and training programmes was 9,745, a decrease of 15% over the year. The numbers of people on SOLAS Full-time Training for Unemployed People and Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) were very similar in October 2022 and 2021. However, the numbers of people receiving the Back to Education Allowance fell by 35% to 3,215 in October 2022.
The number of people participating on employment programmes decreased by 3% to 26,620. Community Employment remains the largest programme with 18,585 participants in October 2022, a 3.2% decrease over the year. The next biggest programme is TÚS - Community Work Placement Initiative, with 4,794 participants, a decrease of 8.1% over the year. The third largest employment programme is the Back to Work Enterprise Allowance scheme: with 2,356 participants, an annual increase of 0.5%.
Amongst the smaller schemes, the Work Placement Experience Programme (WPEP), which commenced in July 2021, has grown from 161 participants in October 2021 to 469 participants in October 2022. While participation on the Short-term Enterprise Allowance (STEA) increased by 12.6% to 294 participants. The biggest decrease was in the Part-time Job Incentive Scheme (PTJIS), it went from 284 participants in October 2021 to 122 in October 2022. The PTJIS facilitates people who are long unemployed to take up part-time employment for less than 24 hours per week and receive a weekly income supplement of €131.80 for a single person and €214.90 for a couple. In January after the changes announced in Budget 2023 take effect these figures will change to €139.40 for a single person and €227.30 for a couple.