Unemployment falls to post-crash low of 5.2%

The State’s jobless rate fell to 5.2 per cent last month, according to the latest official figures. The figures show the seasonally adjusted number of people classified as unemployed was 126,000 in August, down 1,800 on the previous month.

This gave rise to a headline rate of 5.2 per cent, down from 5.5 per cent a year ago and the lowest rate recorded since the pre-crash low of 5.1 per cent in October 2007.

The current rate is almost 11 percentage points lower than the 16 per cent rate recorded at the peak of the financial crisis in 2012. It is also two percentage points lower than the current euro area average of 7.5 per cent.

On current trends, unemployment is expected to fall below 5 per cent next year, a rate which analysts equate to full employment here.

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The 5.2 per cent rate is higher than previously reported on account of a recent upward revision by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), one of several in the past two years.

The agency, however, insists the underlying trend continues to be downward in keeping with the growth in employment.

Participation rates, particularly for women, however, remain lower than at the peak of the boom or by international standards.

The State’s youth unemployment rate was put at 14.7 per cent in August, unchanged from the previous month.

“After the pick-up in unemployment in recent months, the fall in August is encouraging, and we think the numbers in work will continue to rise on an annual basis over the remainder of 2019,” analyst Alan McQuaid said.

“The latest Labour Force Survey figures showed that the participation rate stood at 62.1 per cent in the second quarter of this year, compared with a pre-recession peak of 66.7 per cent,” he said. Greater participation will admittedly slow down the fall in the jobless rate, according to Mr McQuaid.

Pawel Adrjan, economist at recruitment site Indeed, said: “The unemployment rate resumed its downward trend in August, following softer data for June and July.

“There continues to be strong competition to hire staff, particularly in areas with skills shortage such as finance, engineering, pharmaceuticals and technology. Whilst we may see further declines, the rate cannot go down infinitely, and we are getting closer to a level that may be viewed as full employment,” he said.