CSO: 'Employment up 55,000 in 2004'
02/03/2005 - 12:12:59The number of people at work in Ireland increased by almost 55,000 last year, according to figures published today by the Central Statistics Office.
The CSO said employment increased by 3% during the year, compared to a 1.9% increase in 2003 and a 1.8% increase in 2002.
It said employment growth was particularly strong in the last three months of the year and was highest in the construction sector, where the numbers employed increased by 10% in 2004.
Meanwhile, the CSO said the overall number of people unemployed decreased by around 300 during the year.
However, this masked an increase of around 2,700 in the number of people ranked as long-term unemployed.
