45,000 jobs added to the economy in first half of 2019
45,000 jobs were added to the economy in the first half of this year.
New CSO figures show 2.3m people are now employed in Ireland.
Transportation and Education saw the biggest increases in employment - with both sectors boosted by 13,000.
Over 130,000 people were unemployed in the second quarter of the year, down 9.4% on the same time last year.
Long-term unemployment (people over one year out of work) accounted for 31.2% of total unemployment.
Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe said in a statement: “There is now no doubt that Ireland’s labour market has recovered from the crisis and remains very close to full employment.
“This means we must continue to do our utmost to guard against risks of overheating that may now emerge.
“Further work is needed to increase Ireland’s labour force participation rate, which currently remains below pre-crisis levels.”
