The number of people claiming unemployment assistance and benefit in Ireland increased by 1.7 per cent in May, figures released today reveal.
The seasonally adjusted Live Register increased from 154,200 in April to 156,800 in May, a rise of 2,600. This compares with a decrease of 4,800 in April.
In the year to May, there was an unadjusted drop of 11,146 (6.9 per cent) in the Live Register figures, the CSO said.
May's increase of 2,600 is exactly equally divided between men and women newly claiming unemployment benefits.
According to the CSO, the unemployment rate in May was 4.2 per cent, compared with 4.4 per cent last October. The figure is based on the Quarterly National Household Survey conducted by the CSO.
The Live Register is not designed to measure unemployment as it includes part-time workers who are employed up to three days a week who are entitled to claim unemployment benefit or assistance.
The CSO said the latest seasonally adjusted unemployment figure shows 83,900 people are unemployed, based on figures for September to November 2004.