No job displacement in economy - data

Irish workers are being displaced by foreign nationals in the manufacturing and catering sectors, but they are finding alternative work elsewhere in the economy, according to the latest data.

The Central Statistics Office said yesterday that the number of Irish nationals working in manufacturing fell by 19,000 in the 12 months to last November. However the number of foreign nationals working in the sector rose by 7,500, resulting in a net loss of 12,800 jobs.

A similar pattern was apparent in the hotel and restaurant sector. The number of Irish workers in the sector fell by 800 while employment in the sector overall rose by 2,900, with foreign nationals accounting for the increase.

However, a significant rise in employment at the end of the year suggests the Irish nationals exiting these sectors are finding jobs elsewhere and no "job displacement" has occurred in the economy as a whole.

Some 86,500 jobs were created in 12 months to November. This was 4.7 per cent up on a year previously, according to the Quarterly National Household Survey published yesterday.

However, annual jobs growth has slowed since mid-year, while the pace of quarter-on-quarter growth has also slowed.

Employment levels in the September to November period were 0.9 per cent higher than the preceding three months. This compares with respective growth of 1 and 1.2 per cent in the June to August and March to May periods.

The breakdown of workers by nationality, published for the first time by the CSO, shows the number of foreign workers rising from one in 15 in November 2004 to one in 12 a year later.

Some 43,300 - just over half - of new jobs in the year to November went to foreign workers, bringing their total number to 171,000. The number of foreign workers grew by 33.9 per cent over the period, while the number of workers from EU accession states increased by 119 per cent.

Analysts drew attention yesterday to the continuing strength of the labour market, but some pointed to weakness in manufacturing and agriculture.

"The rise in employment remains broadly based. Of the 11 main economic sectors outlined in the Central Statistics Office data, 10 recorded higher numbers at work in late 2005 than a year earlier, while nine were also higher than in the previous quarter," Irish Intercontinental Bank economist Austin Hughes said yesterday.

Dermot O'Leary of Goodbody stockbrokers said that recent declines in agricultural and manufacturing employment were a continuation of longer-term trends in these sectors.

"These two sectors combined shed 2.4 per cent of their workforce in 2005. This is not a recent phenomenon, however, as job losses have totalled over 40,000 since 2000.

"Further job losses are to be expected in these areas in the coming years."

The number of unemployed fell by 5,400 between September and November, bringing total unemployment to 91,300.

At just 4.2 per cent of the labour force, the Republic's unemployment rate remains the lowest of any member-state in the EU and is less than half the EU average rate of 9 per cent.