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Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023

Employment

LFS estimates were updated on 22nd Feb 2024 to incorporate updated population estimates for the period 2016 Q3 to 2023 Q3, based on the results of Census 2022. LFS results are updated in this way following each Census of Population. For further information see Background Notes.
The data in this publication does not reflect these updates. Please refer to the relevant tables on LFS Px-stat for updated LFS estimates.

Employment

Employment up 31,600 (2.3%) for males and 70,000 (5.9%) for females in the year to Q3 2023

Online ISSN: 2565-5728

CSO statistical publication, 23 November 2023, 11am

2,655,900

Persons in employment in Q3 2023

this continues to be the highest number of people in employment since the series began in Q1 1998

Source: CSO Ireland, Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023

Numbers Employed

Using standard International Labour Organisation (ILO) criteria, an estimated 2,655,900 persons were in employment in Q3 2023, up 4.0% (101,600) from 2,554,300 in Q3 2022.

The increase of 101,600 (+4.0%) in employment is composed of increases of 31,600 (+2.3%) for males and 70,000 (+5.9%) for females in the year to Q3 2023. See Table 2.1.

See Monthly Estimates of Payroll Employees using Administrative Data Sources outputs for supplementary employment analysis.

Table 2.1 Persons aged 15 years and over classified by Sex and ILO Economic Status

Table 2.1 Persons aged 15 years and over classified by sex and ILO Economic Status
'000
ILO Economic Status		Q3 21	Q2 22	Q3 22	Q4 22	Q1 23	Q2 23	Q3 23
Males
In labour force (Persons aged 15-89)		1,395.3	1,423.4	1,431.2	1,425.7	1,447.4	1,452.5	1,471.8
In employment (Persons aged 15-89)		1,316.7	1,360.2	1,371.8	1,368.5	1,384.7	1,386.1	1,403.3
full-time		1,149.6	1,190.4	1,197.8	1,194.8	1,206.9	1,217.9	1,226.5
part-time		167.1	169.8	173.9	173.7	177.9	168.2	176.8
of which:	part-time, not underemployed	121.5	126.0	133.0	135.6	137.7	118.4	128.5
	part-time, underemployed	45.6	43.8	41.0	38.2	40.2	49.8	48.3
Unemployed (Persons aged 15-74)		78.6	63.2	59.4	57.2	62.7	66.4	68.5
seeking full-time work/future job-starter		60.1	49.4	45.9	48.3	49.1	52.6	51.4
seeking part-time work		12.9	9.7	11.2	[6.9]	11.5	12.0	14.6
seeking work as self-employed		*	*	*	*	*	*	*
Not in labour force (Persons aged 15+)		582.7	582.2	589.6	609.2	602.4	605.5	598.8
Potential additional labour force		47.8	42.3	34.9	27.0	31.6	49.0	42.0
Others		534.9	539.9	554.7	582.2	570.8	556.6	556.8
Total males aged 15 or over		1,978.0	2,005.5	2,020.8	2,034.9	2,049.8	2,058.0	2,070.6
Unemployment rate % (Persons aged 15-74)		5.7	4.5	4.2	4.0	4.4	4.6	4.7
Participation rate % (Persons aged 15+)		70.5	71.0	70.8	70.1	70.6	70.6	71.1

Females
In labour force (Persons aged 15-89)		1,225.0	1,251.1	1,242.2	1,260.8	1,271.7	1,311.7	1,312.6
In employment (Persons aged 15-89)		1,154.5	1,194.4	1,182.5	1,206.0	1,223.7	1,256.9	1,252.5
full-time		788.3	820.1	820.9	825.4	839.9	866.1	855.5
part-time		366.3	374.3	361.6	380.6	383.8	390.8	397.1
of which:	part-time, not underemployed	301.7	303.3	293.3	316.3	313.3	300.9	314.6
	part-time, underemployed	64.5	70.9	68.3	64.3	70.5	89.9	82.5
Unemployed (Persons aged 15-74)		70.5	56.7	59.7	54.8	48.0	54.8	60.1
seeking full-time work/future job-starter		42.9	34.5	35.1	34.2	32.3	32.8	37.2
seeking part-time work		26.2	19.5	23.1	18.0	13.2	21.1	22.6
seeking work as self-employed		*	*	*	*	*	*	*
Not in labour force (Persons aged 15+)		825.0	842.6	865.5	864.1	865.9	840.3	847.1
Potential additional labour force		58.2	42.2	38.2	32.8	46.9	50.3	49.0
Others		766.7	800.4	827.3	831.3	819.0	790.0	798.1
Total females aged 15 or over		2,050.0	2,093.7	2,107.7	2,124.9	2,137.6	2,152.0	2,159.7
Unemployment rate % (Persons aged 15-74)		5.8	4.5	4.8	4.4	3.8	4.2	4.6
Participation rate % (Persons aged 15+)		59.8	59.8	58.9	59.3	59.5	61.0	60.8

All persons
In labour force (Persons aged 15-89)		2,620.3	2,674.5	2,673.4	2,686.5	2,719.1	2,764.2	2,784.4
In employment (Persons aged 15-89)		2,471.2	2,554.6	2,554.3	2,574.5	2,608.5	2,643.0	2,655.9
full-time		1,937.9	2,010.5	2,018.8	2,020.2	2,046.8	2,083.9	2,082.0
part-time		533.3	544.1	535.5	554.3	561.7	559.1	573.9
of which:	part-time, not underemployed	423.2	429.3	426.2	451.9	451.0	419.4	443.1
	part-time, underemployed	110.1	114.7	109.3	102.4	110.7	139.7	130.8
Unemployed (Persons aged 15-74)		149.1	119.9	119.1	112.0	110.7	121.2	128.6
seeking full-time work/future job-starter		103.0	84.0	81.0	82.4	81.3	85.4	88.7
seeking part-time work		39.1	29.2	34.3	25.0	24.7	33.1	37.2
seeking work as self-employed		[6.9]	[6.7]	*	*	*	*	*
Not in labour force (Persons aged 15+)		1,407.7	1,424.8	1,455.1	1,473.3	1,468.3	1,445.8	1,445.9
Potential additional labour force		106.0	84.4	73.1	59.9	78.5	99.2	91.1
Others		1,301.7	1,340.4	1,382.0	1,413.5	1,389.8	1,346.6	1,354.8
Total persons aged 15 or over		4,028.1	4,099.3	4,128.5	4,159.9	4,187.4	4,210.1	4,230.3
Unemployment rate % (Persons aged 15-74)		5.7	4.5	4.5	4.2	4.1	4.4	4.6
Participation rate % (Persons aged 15+)		65.1	65.2	64.8	64.6	64.9	65.7	65.8

Employment rate % (Persons aged 15-64)
Male		76.4	78.4	78.8	78.0	78.1	78.0	78.4
Female		68.0	68.8	67.8	68.5	69.2	70.5	70.0
Total persons		72.2	73.5	73.2	73.2	73.6	74.2	74.1
¹Estimates for number of persons, where there are less than 30 persons in a cell, are too small to be considered reliable. These estimates are presented with an asterisk (*) in the relevant tables. Where there are 30-49 persons in a cell, estimates are considered to have a wider margin of error and should be treated with caution. These cells are presented with parentheses []. In the case of rates, these limits apply to the denominator used in generating the rate. In the case of annual changes, both the current year and the preceding year are taken into account when deciding whether the estimate should be suppressed or flagged as having a wider margin of error.

Open in Excel: Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023 Table 2.1 (XLS 47KB)

49.7%

Youth employment rate in Q3 2023

this means that almost half of those aged 15-24 were in employment in the quarter

up from 47.8% a year earlier

Source: CSO Ireland, Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023

Employment Rates

The employment rate for those aged 15-64 was 74.1% in Q3 2023 compared to 73.2% in Q3 2022 and 72.2% in Q3 2021. In Q3 2023, the employment rate for males aged 15-64 years was 78.4%, compared to 70.0% for females.

Looking at the rates by age group, the employment rate was lowest among those aged 15-19 years (30.4%) and highest among those aged 35-44 years (84.2%). The rate of youth employment, those aged 15-24, stood at 49.7%; slightly higher for females (49.9%) than for males (49.6%). See Tables 2.1 and 2.2.

Table 2.2 Persons aged 15 years and over classified by key Economic Rates, Sex and Age Group

Table 2.2 Persons aged 15-89 years classified by ILO economic status, sex, age group and quarter
'000
		Employment rate (15-64)			Unemployment rate (15-74)			Participation rate (15+)
		Q3 21	Q3 22	Q3 23	Q3 21	Q3 22	Q3 23	Q3 21	Q3 22	Q3 23
Males
	15-19	33.2	29.2	29.4	12.0	16.8	15.7	37.8	35.0	34.9
	20-24	68.3	70.9	71.4	12.2	8.5	9.9	77.8	77.4	79.3
	Total 15-24 (Youths)	50.4	49.4	49.6	12.1	11.2	11.8	57.3	55.6	56.2
	25-34	84.1	86.8	86.1	6.7	4.0	6.3	90.2	90.5	91.8
	35-44	90.0	91.8	90.1	3.3	3.3	4.0	93.1	94.9	93.8
	45-54	85.1	88.5	88.0	4.5	2.4	2.2	89.1	90.7	90.0
	55-59	79.6	81.2	83.2	5.2	2.8	2.1	84.0	83.5	85.0
	60-64	58.5	68.4	70.4	6.0	3.9	2.9	62.2	71.2	72.5
	65-74	:	:	:	1.4	1.2	0.6	30.2	26.5	28.8
	75+	:	:	:	:	:	:	8.5	7.5	8.2
	Total males	76.4	78.8	78.4	5.7	4.2	4.7	70.5	70.8	71.1

Females
	15-19	33.2	29.5	31.5	16.8	16.2	18.1	39.9	35.2	38.4
	20-24	67.6	63.3	69.3	9.3	11.1	9.9	74.5	71.2	76.9
	Total 15-24 (Youths)	50.0	46.1	49.9	12.0	12.8	12.7	56.8	52.9	57.1
	25-34	77.2	78.1	79.4	5.3	5.1	3.8	81.6	82.3	82.5
	35-44	77.1	76.7	78.9	5.3	3.1	4.2	81.3	79.2	82.4
	45-54	74.3	75.1	78.8	3.7	3.1	2.2	77.1	77.5	80.6
	55-59	67.2	68.8	68.2	4.4	2.9	2.7	70.3	70.8	70.1
	60-64	46.3	47.8	48.1	4.8	3.6	2.7	48.6	49.6	49.4
	65-74	:	:	:	3.8	1.9	1.6	13.5	13.2	15.4
	75+	:	:	:	:	:	:	1.4	1.7	1.6
	Total females	68.0	67.8	70.0	5.8	4.8	4.6	59.8	58.9	60.8

All persons
	15-19	33.2	29.3	30.4	14.4	16.5	16.9	38.8	35.1	36.6
	20-24	67.9	67.1	70.4	10.8	9.7	9.9	76.2	74.4	78.1
	Total 15-24 (Youths)	50.2	47.8	49.7	12.1	12.0	12.2	57.1	54.3	56.7
	25-34	80.6	82.4	82.7	6.1	4.5	5.1	85.9	86.3	87.2
	35-44	83.3	84.0	84.2	4.2	3.2	4.1	87.0	86.7	87.8
	45-54	79.7	81.7	83.3	4.1	2.7	2.2	83.1	84.0	85.2
	55-59	73.3	74.9	75.5	4.8	2.8	2.4	77.1	77.0	77.4
	60-64	52.3	57.9	59.0	5.5	3.8	2.8	55.3	60.2	60.7
	65-74	:	:	:	2.2	1.4	0.9	21.7	19.7	22.0
	75+	:	:	:	:	:	:	4.5	4.3	4.6
	Total persons	72.2	73.2	74.1	5.7	4.5	4.6	65.1	64.8	65.8
¹ : Not applicable

Open in Excel: Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023 Table 2.2 (XLS 45KB)

Economic Sector

Table 2.3 Persons aged 15-89 years in employment (ILO) classified by sex and NACE Rev.2 Economic Sector

Table 2.3 Persons aged 15-89 years in employment (ILO) classified by sex and NACE Rev.2 Economic Sector
'000
Economic sector (NACE Rev.2)		Q3 21	Q2 22	Q3 22	Q4 22	Q1 23	Q2 23	Q3 23
Males
A	Agriculture, forestry and fishing	92.0	90.9	82.8	83.4	83.1	84.3	94.5

B-F	Total Industry	347.2	374.2	383.1	372.6	375.8	369.4	366.2
B-E	Industry	213.0	222.4	227.8	226.3	227.9	214.4	211.8
F	Construction	134.3	151.8	155.3	146.3	148.0	155.0	154.4

G-U	Total Services	874.4	890.2	900.7	907.0	921.3	929.8	936.3
G	Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	153.7	164.5	162.8	161.0	169.1	170.9	157.9
H	Transportation and storage	86.0	89.0	87.5	88.5	92.6	94.4	93.4
I	Accommodation and food service activities	81.4	72.9	77.1	85.3	78.8	79.4	81.3
J	Information and communication	101.7	114.8	111.1	108.6	115.2	118.0	122.1
K-L	Financial, insurance and real estate activities	70.4	66.8	69.2	69.6	72.0	69.2	68.2
M	Professional, scientific and technical activities	89.3	90.8	97.6	99.3	94.0	96.6	97.7
N	Administrative and support service activities	62.9	61.0	66.3	59.5	60.4	63.6	63.7
O	Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	57.8	59.1	64.1	67.3	67.0	67.6	66.6
P	Education	57.2	57.3	51.9	53.1	55.4	56.8	57.8
Q	Human health and social work activities	66.5	71.2	70.8	72.2	70.4	65.5	76.8
R-U	Other NACE activities	47.5	42.7	42.4	42.6	46.2	47.9	50.9
Not stated		*	[4.8]	*	*	*	*	[6.3]
Total males		1,316.7	1,360.2	1,371.8	1,368.5	1,384.7	1,386.1	1,403.3

Females
A	Agriculture, forestry and fishing	15.0	14.9	11.8	17.3	16.0	14.9	17.2

B-F	Total Industry	106.2	114.3	118.3	113.6	115.2	118.0	122.8
B-E	Industry	94.1	98.8	102.6	96.7	102.4	102.8	109.8
F	Construction	12.1	15.5	15.7	16.9	12.9	15.2	13.0

G-U	Total Services	1,031.5	1,061.0	1,047.2	1,071.3	1,089.8	1,122.0	1,109.8
G	Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	157.0	156.7	152.5	159.4	162.3	166.5	164.3
H	Transportation and storage	22.7	21.9	21.0	24.6	18.1	20.4	21.1
I	Accommodation and food service activities	95.3	95.3	92.9	85.1	92.5	97.1	100.1
J	Information and communication	45.7	50.1	48.4	56.0	53.4	55.4	54.7
K-L	Financial, insurance and real estate activities	67.5	64.1	58.2	63.1	60.5	67.3	64.3
M	Professional, scientific and technical activities	75.6	75.8	68.2	71.4	72.6	79.0	80.2
N	Administrative and support service activities	40.2	45.0	44.6	50.4	52.5	47.3	46.9
O	Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	66.4	68.1	68.1	70.2	72.2	73.9	67.3
P	Education	151.1	158.2	154.4	151.8	154.7	160.7	161.4
Q	Human health and social work activities	239.9	259.9	265.7	264.3	277.4	284.2	276.8
R-U	Other NACE activities	70.1	65.9	73.2	75.1	73.7	70.3	72.5
Not stated		*	*	*	*	*	*	*
Total females		1,154.5	1,194.4	1,182.5	1,206.0	1,223.7	1,256.9	1,252.5

All persons
A	Agriculture, forestry and fishing	107.0	105.8	94.6	100.8	99.1	99.2	111.7

B-F	Total Industry	453.4	488.4	501.4	486.2	491.1	487.4	489.0
B-E	Industry	307.1	321.1	330.4	323.0	330.2	317.2	321.6
F	Construction	146.3	167.3	171.0	163.2	160.8	170.2	167.4

G-U	Total Services	1,905.9	1,951.3	1,947.9	1,978.4	2,011.1	2,051.8	2,046.1
G	Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	310.8	321.2	315.3	320.3	331.3	337.3	322.2
H	Transportation and storage	108.7	110.9	108.5	113.1	110.7	114.8	114.5
I	Accommodation and food service activities	176.7	168.2	170.0	170.4	171.4	176.5	181.4
J	Information and communication	147.3	164.9	159.5	164.6	168.6	173.4	176.8
K-L	Financial, insurance and real estate activities	137.9	130.9	127.4	132.7	132.5	136.5	132.4
M	Professional, scientific and technical activities	164.9	166.7	165.7	170.7	166.6	175.6	177.9
N	Administrative and support service activities	103.1	105.9	110.9	110.0	113.0	110.8	110.7
O	Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	124.2	127.2	132.2	137.5	139.2	141.5	134.0
P	Education	208.3	215.5	206.3	204.9	210.1	217.5	219.1
Q	Human health and social work activities	306.4	331.1	336.6	336.5	347.8	349.7	353.6
R-U	Other NACE activities	117.6	108.6	115.6	117.7	119.9	118.2	123.5
Not stated		*	9.1	10.4	[9.2]	[7.2]	*	[9.1]
Total persons		2,471.2	2,554.6	2,554.3	2,574.5	2,608.5	2,643.0	2,655.9
¹ Estimates for number of persons, where there are less than 30 persons in a cell, are too small to be considered reliable. These estimates are presented with an asterisk (*) in the relevant tables. Where there are 30-49 persons in a cell, estimates are considered to have a wider margin of error and should be treated with caution. These cells are presented with parentheses [].

Open in Excel: Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023 Table 2.3 (XLS 45KB)

Employment Status

The number of employees increased by 89,300 (+4.1%) in the year to Q3 2023 to 2,287,000, while the number of self-employed increased by 2,800 (+0.8%) to 338,000.

The increase in overall employment of 101,600 in the year to Q3 2023 was made up of 63,200 (+3.1%) persons in full-time employment and 38,300 (+7.2%) persons in part-time employment. See Tables 2.1 and 2.4.

Table 2.4 Persons aged 15 – 89 years in employment (ILO) classified by sex and employment status

NUTS 3 Regions

Employment increased over the year in all NUTS 3 regions. The West region saw the largest percentage increase at 8.6%, followed by the Border region at 5.1%. See Table 2.5

Table 2.5 Persons aged 15 years and over classified by NUTS2 and NUTS3 regions and ILO Economic Status

Table 2.5 Persons aged 15 years and over classified by NUTS2 and NUTS3 regions and ILO Economic Status

Region		Q3 21	Q2 22	Q3 22	Q4 22	Q1 23	Q2 23	Q3 23
Northern and Western
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	428.3	436.4	437.2	442.3	450.6	456.3	467.9
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	18.8	17.4	22.4	18.1	18.2	17.9	18.3
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	447.1	453.8	459.6	460.4	468.8	474.2	486.3
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	4.2	3.9	4.9	4.0	3.9	3.8	3.8
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	63.0	62.7	62.8	62.5	63.1	63.5	64.8
Border
	In employment ('000) (Perons aged 15-89)	196.7	199.3	200.0	201.3	205.4	205.1	210.2
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	[7.5]	[8.0]	11.4	[9.3]	[8.6]	[8.3]	[9.4]
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	204.3	207.3	211.4	210.6	214.0	213.4	219.6
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	3.7	3.9	5.4	4.5	4.0	3.9	4.3
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	62.0	61.6	62.0	61.6	62.2	61.7	63.0
West
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	231.6	237.1	237.2	241.0	245.2	251.2	257.7
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	11.3	[9.4]	11.0	[8.8]	[9.6]	[9.6]	[9.0]
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	242.9	246.4	248.2	249.8	254.8	260.8	266.7
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	4.7	3.8	4.5	3.6	3.8	3.7	3.4
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	63.8	63.7	63.4	63.3	63.8	65.0	66.4

Southern
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	792.3	821.6	822.7	822.3	833.4	841.2	859.3
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	48.2	41.9	33.1	34.5	28.5	42.5	44.4
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	840.4	863.5	855.8	856.8	861.9	883.7	903.7
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	5.8	4.9	3.9	4.0	3.3	4.8	5.0
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	63.1	63.7	62.7	62.2	62.2	63.4	64.4
Mid-West
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	232.1	245.8	239.5	240.0	241.9	248.7	247.6
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	17.1	11.0	11.2	11.0	10.1	12.5	13.4
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	249.3	256.8	250.8	251.0	252.1	261.2	261.1
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	7.0	4.3	4.5	4.4	4.0	4.8	5.2
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	62.8	63.8	61.9	61.3	61.3	63.0	62.4
South-East
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	200.8	209.3	216.9	213.5	217.3	215.3	227.5
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	[12.4]	[12.2]	[8.4]	[12.1]	[8.7]	13.5	11.5
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	213.2	221.4	225.3	225.6	226.0	228.9	239.0
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	5.8	5.5	3.8	5.4	3.9	6.0	4.9
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	60.2	61.2	61.8	61.4	61.2	61.6	64.0
South-West
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	359.3	366.6	366.3	368.8	374.2	377.1	384.2
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	18.6	18.7	13.4	11.4	9.7	16.4	19.4
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	377.9	385.3	379.7	380.1	383.9	393.6	403.6
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	5.0	4.9	3.6	3.0	2.5	4.2	4.8
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	65.1	65.2	63.7	63.2	63.5	64.8	66.0
Eastern and Midland
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	1,250.6	1,296.6	1,294.4	1,309.9	1,324.4	1,345.5	1,328.6
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	82.1	60.6	63.6	59.4	64.0	60.9	65.9
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	1,332.8	1,357.2	1,358.0	1,369.4	1,388.5	1,406.4	1,394.5
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	6.2	4.5	4.7	4.4	4.6	4.3	4.7
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	67.1	67.2	66.9	66.9	67.4	68.0	67.2
Dublin
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	747.9	774.1	771.3	775.5	785.8	798.2	783.2
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	49.4	37.3	40.4	37.9	41.8	41.8	42.0
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	797.3	811.4	811.7	813.4	827.6	840.0	825.2
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	6.2	4.6	5.0	4.7	5.1	5.0	5.1
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	68.2	68.4	68.1	67.7	68.4	69.1	67.7
Mid-East
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	360.1	369.5	374.3	384.8	381.8	392.9	391.1
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	23.5	19.1	15.9	16.1	15.7	13.3	15.9
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	383.6	388.6	390.1	400.8	397.5	406.1	407.0
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	6.2	4.9	4.1	4.0	4.0	3.3	3.9
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	66.3	65.6	65.5	67.0	66.2	67.3	67.2
Midland
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	142.6	153.0	148.8	149.7	156.9	154.4	154.3
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	[9.2]	*	[7.3]	*	*	*	[8.0]
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	151.8	157.2	156.2	155.1	163.4	160.2	162.3
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	6.1	2.7	4.7	3.5	4.0	3.6	4.9
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	63.4	65.0	64.3	63.1	65.7	64.2	64.5

State
	In employment ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	2,471.2	2,554.6	2,554.3	2,574.5	2,608.5	2,643.0	2,655.9
	Unemployed ('000) (Persons aged 15-74)	149.1	119.9	119.1	112.0	110.7	121.2	128.6
	In labour force ('000) (Persons aged 15-89)	2,620.3	2,674.5	2,673.4	2,686.5	2,719.1	2,764.2	2,784.4
	Unemployment rate (%) (Persons aged 15-74)	5.7	4.5	4.5	4.2	4.1	4.4	4.6
	Participation rate (%) (Persons aged 15+)	65.1	65.2	64.8	64.6	64.9	65.7	65.8
¹ Estimates for number of persons, where there are less than 30 persons in a cell, are too small to be considered reliable. These estimates are presented with an asterisk (*) in the relevant tables. Where there are 30-49 persons in a cell, estimates are considered to have a wider margin of error and should be treated with caution. These cells are presented with parentheses []. In the case of rates, these limits apply to the denominator used in generating the rate. In the case of annual changes, both the current year and the preceding year are taken into account when deciding whether the estimate should be suppressed or flagged as having a wider margin of error.

Open in Excel: Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023 Table 2.5 (XLS 46KB)

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Table 2.4 Persons aged 15-89 years in employment (ILO) classified by sex and employment status
'000
Employment status		Q3 21	Q2 22	Q3 22	Q4 22	Q1 23	Q2 23	Q3 23
Males
	Self employed (with paid employees)	69.4	78.3	76.5	81.1	73.2	74.9	75.0
	Self employed (with no paid employees)	179.4	181.4	175.7	165.0	175.3	173.6	178.2
	Total self employed	248.8	259.7	252.1	246.1	248.5	248.6	253.2
	Employee	1,057.2	1,089.2	1,109.3	1,111.5	1,124.8	1,127.7	1,135.5
	Assisting relative	10.7	11.3	10.4	10.9	11.4	9.8	14.7
	Total males	1,316.7	1,360.2	1,371.8	1,368.5	1,384.7	1,386.1	1,403.3

Females
	Self employed (with paid employees)	23.8	21.3	22.9	21.7	23.5	24.5	27.5
	Self employed (with no paid employees)	64.5	59.9	60.2	64.0	61.1	62.4	57.3
	Total self employed	88.2	81.3	83.1	85.7	84.7	86.9	84.8
	Employee	1,058.4	1,102.9	1,088.4	1,108.2	1,124.4	1,158.4	1,151.5
	Assisting relative	7.9	10.3	11.0	12.1	14.7	11.6	16.2
	Total females	1,154.5	1,194.4	1,182.5	1,206.0	1,223.7	1,256.9	1,252.5

All persons
	Self employed (with paid employees)	93.2	99.7	99.4	102.9	96.8	99.4	102.5
	Self employed (with no paid employees)	243.9	241.3	235.8	229.0	236.4	236.0	235.5
	Total self employed	337.0	341.0	335.2	331.8	333.2	335.4	338.0
	Employee	2,115.6	2,192.0	2,197.7	2,219.7	2,249.2	2,286.2	2,287.0
	Assisting relative	18.6	21.6	21.4	23.0	26.1	21.5	30.9
	Total persons	2,471.2	2,554.6	2,554.3	2,574.5	2,608.5	2,643.0	2,655.9
¹ Estimates for number of persons, where there are less than 30 persons in a cell, are too small to be considered reliable. These estimates are presented with an asterisk (*) in the relevant tables. Where there are 30-49 persons in a cell, estimates are considered to have a wider margin of error and should be treated with caution. These cells are presented with parentheses [].

Labour Force Survey Quarter 3 2023

Employment

Employment

Employment up 31,600 (2.3%) for males and 70,000 (5.9%) for females in the year to Q3 2023

Numbers Employed

Employment Rates

Economic Sector

Employment Status

NUTS 3 Regions

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