The unemployment rate for people aged 15-64 years in Q3 2025 was 5.3%, up 0.8 percentage points from 4.5% in Q3 2024. This is the highest rate recorded since Q3 2021.
The employment rate for people aged 15-64 years was 74.7% in Q3 2025, down from 75.3% in Q3 2024. This is the first year-on-year decrease in the employment rate since Q1 2021.
The number of people aged 15-89 years in employment rose by 30,600 or 1.1% to 2,825,500 people in the 12 months to Q3 2025.
There were 155,400 unemployed people aged 15-74 years in Q3 2025 using International Labour Organisation (ILO) criteria, which is an increase of 25,900 people (+20.0%) from Q3 2024.
The estimated Labour Force (the sum of all people aged 15-89 years who were either employed or unemployed) stood at 2,980,900 in Q3 2025, up 1.9% (+56,500) from Q3 2024.
The estimated labour market participation rate in Q3 2025 was 66.5%, down from 66.6% in Q3 2024.
The estimated total number of hours worked per week in Q3 2025 increased by 0.5 million hours or 0.6% on Q3 2024 figures to 86.5 million hours.
The headline table shows the numbers and rates for employed and unemployed people. It also shows those working in the labour force and those not in the labour force. It highlights the annual change to Q3 2025.
| Table 1.1 Labour Force Survey Summary Results | ||
| Indicator | Q3 2025 | Annual change 1 |
| Employed persons aged 15-89 years | 2,825,500 | +30,600 |
| Employment rate for those aged 15-64 years | 74.7% | -0.6 pp |
| Unemployed persons aged 15-74 years | 155,400 | +25,900 |
| Unemployment rate for those aged 15-74 years | 5.3% | -0.8pp |
| In labour force | 2,980,900 | +56,500 |
| Not in labour force | 1,499,900 | +34,800 |
| 1 pp refers to percentage point change | ||
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a continuous household survey carried out by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and is the official source for employment and unemployment estimates in Ireland.
The official labour market classification of respondents to the LFS is based on International Labour Organisation (ILO) concepts and definitions.
All European Union (EU) Member States are legally obliged to carry out a Labour Force Survey and to provide these data to Eurostat on a quarterly basis, as set out in the Integration of European Social Statistics (IESS) framework regulation (EU 2019/1700) and Implementing Regulation (EU 2019/2240), which apply from 01 January 2021.
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (20 November 2025) published results from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for Quarter 3 2025.
Commenting on today’s release, Colin Hanley, Statistician in the Labour Market & Earnings Division, said: “The estimated number of people in employment in Q3 2025 stood at 2,825,500, up by 1.1% compared with a year ago.
Employment
The 1.1% rise in the number of people in employment in the 12 months to Q3 2025 was equivalent to 30,600 more people working than a year earlier.
An estimated 581,600 or 20.6% of those in employment worked part-time, and 141,400 or 24.3% of those in part-time employment were classified as underemployed (i.e. they would like to work more hours for more pay).
In the 12 months to Q3 2025 the age group with the highest employment rate was the 35-44 years age group (84.9%), which was down 0.7 percentage points from the 85.6% recorded a year previously. The lowest employment rate by age was observed in the 15-19 year old cohort at 28.7%.
The largest increase in employment by economic sector was in Transportation & Storage, which rose by 18,800 people (+15.9%). The largest decrease in employment was in Public Administration & Defence, down by 10,300 people (-6.7%).
Hours Worked
The estimated total number of hours worked in Q3 2025 was 86.5 million hours per week, which was 0.5 million more hours worked per week when compared with Q3 2024.
The year-on-year change in hours worked varied across the different economic sectors. Industry (B-E) saw an additional 700,000 hours worked when compared with Q3 2024. The largest sectoral decreases in hours worked were in Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing and the Information & Communication sectors, which were each down 400,000 hours in the year to Q3 2025.
Unemployment
The number of people aged 15-74 years who were unemployed in Q2 2025 stood at 155,400, with an associated Unemployment Rate of 5.3%. This is the highest rate recorded since Q3 2021.
There were 34,400 people in long-term unemployment (unemployed for 12 months or longer) in Q3 2025, 7,400 more people than in Q3 2024. The corresponding rate of long-term unemployment was 1.2%, up from 0.9% a year earlier.”
Survey Participation
Commenting on the importance of sampled individuals taking part in the LFS, Colin Hanley added: “Sampled households receive introductory letters by post asking them to take part in the Labour Force Survey. A person from a participating household completes the interview either by telephone or by a CSO interviewer visiting the household.
Household surveys give us a picture of the economic and social situation of the citizens of Ireland with a level of accuracy that no one else can gain. If you are asked to take part in a CSO survey, please do so. We count on you to take part in our surveys, and you can count on us to provide accurate statistics that reflect our society.”