Neither figure is seasonally adjusted.
Overall, the economy employed just under 2.5 million people in December 2023, according to the CSO’s latest payroll estimates. This figure is based on real-time payslip data provided to the Department of Revenue and is different from the quarterly Labor Force Survey.
According to CSO data, the information and communications sector had the largest year-on-year employment decline of all sectors.
The news comes a day after TikTok announced massive layoffs globally, with the Chinese-owned social media company employing around 3,000 people and hundreds of jobs in Ireland. It is expected. Internationally, the technology sector has endured a wave of layoffs since the coronavirus ended, after expanding significantly during the pandemic. Stripe, X, Meta and Microsoft are among the tech giants that have relinquished their positions in Ireland.
Jobs in the public sector, health care, transportation, and construction increased. The number of construction workers on the payroll of Irish companies stood at 139,300 in December last year, seasonally adjusted.
Job openings in the management and support services sector, which includes rental and leasing companies, travel agencies, general office workers, and recruitment agencies, also fell by a seasonally adjusted 1.6% year-on-year.
In the month to December, employment numbers also fell slightly in the retail and wholesale sector, the arts and entertainment sector, and “other service activities,” a smaller sector that includes cleaners for private homeowners.
However, economy-wide payrolls increased in December. The seasonally adjusted employee index increased by 1.8% in the year to December last year, and by 0.1% in the month.
Public sector employment increased the most in the month, but only by 0.3%. The number of transport and storage jobs increased by 5.8% in the year, and public sector jobs increased by 4% in 2023 overall.
The health and social care sector ranks second in terms of employment after retail and wholesale trade. The number of employees increased by 3.7% compared to December 2022.
The finance and construction sector also increased by more than 3% year over year, slightly outpacing the 2.4% increase in the professional, science and technology sector.