Unemployment numbers increase by 26%

Dublin- The Government must act urgently to stem growing joblessness as latest figures showed tens of thousands of people joining the dole queue, it was warned today.

Although the number of people on the live register dropped very slightly last month the overall trend is a surge in those signing on – particularly among men. The latest Central Statistics Office report reveals an increase of 41,300 people – or 26% – signing on the dole since the same month last year. Of these, the vast majority, at 81%, are men in what is being seen as a reflection of the slump in the country’s construction industry. Congress, which represents more than 800,000 workers and trade union members, said there was now a sense of urgency around the need for an official plan of action to deal with the negative trend.

“Government and employers should already be implementing a response to ensure the impact of the rise in unemployment is mitigated,” said Paul Sweeney, Congress economic advisor.“We must not and cannot wait another five or 10 years for a response, by which time the unemployed have lost their skills and the problem will have become more entrenched.

“We must put a coherent skills strategy in place and facilitate people getting back to work as fast as possible. Now is the time to act to introduce paid educational leave and to implement skills training in many more workplaces.” There were 199,700 people signing on last month, a slight drop of 200 on March, but that drop was attributed to a previous rise in the live register numbers as casual and seasonal workers signed for the Easter holidays. IBEC said the increase in those signing on was because of a sharp slowdown in the economy and particularly the construction industry. Fergal O’Brien , a senior economist with IBEC, said the plight of immigrant workers on building sites will determine future trends.