CSO: Weekly earnings on the rise
Figures released today have shown that average earnings in Ireland have risen.
According to the CSO, weekly earnings increased by 0.7% in the year to the end of March 2012 from €686.73 to €691.29.
However, average hourly earnings dropped by 5c, from €22.21 in the first quarter of 2011, to €22.16 in Q1 of this year.
The report on earnings in Ireland also confirms that public sector numbers are down to 386,300 in the first three months of this year - a fall of 5.5% on the previous year.
The total reduction in employment in the public sector over the three years from Q1 2009 to Q1 2012 was 34,700, a decrease of 8.2%.
The overall number of employees in the country fell by 0.6% in the year to Q1 2012.
An increase of 1.3% was recorded in private sector employment over the 12 months to Q1 2012 and now stands at 1,110,000.
