On the 6th February, 2025, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) published the Monthly Unemployment (MU) figures for January 2025. The Monthly Unemployment figures are estimated using trends in the Live Register figures based on data from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) and are subject to revision. The Labour Force Survey is published on a quarterly basis by the CSO and provides the official employment and unemployment figures.
According to the latest Monthly Unemployment figures, 116,200 people were unemployed in January 2025, a decrease of 4% on January 2024. The Monthly Unemployment Rate (MUR) was 4%, 0.5 percentage points lower than a year ago. The sum of the decrease isn’t equal for both men and women, however; 3,400 less men are unemployed compared to January 2024, while there are 6,800 less women unemployed.
The Monthly Unemployment Rate for men decreased by 0.3 percentage points to 4% and for women by 0.5 percentage points to 4.1%. Women accounted for 48% of the unemployed in January 2025.
Young People – An Increase in Numbers Unemployed
In January 2025, 42,700 people aged 15-24 were unemployed, 1,600 more young people than in January 2024, a 3.9% total increase. This age group is 37% of all unemployed people. Their MUR is 11.9%, a 1% increase in one year. Over the year, unemployment amongst young men has increased by 0.9 percentage points; the MUR has increased to 11.7%. Unemployment amongst young women increased to 20,700, while their unemployment rate is 12.3%. In January 2025, women accounted for 48% of those unemployed in this age category.
People Aged 25-74yrs
The Monthly Unemployment figure for people aged 25-74yrs was 73,500 in January 2025, a drop of 13.7% since January 2024. The Monthly Unemployment Rate (MUR) was 2.9% in January 2025, a decrease of 0.7 percentage points over the year. In this age category unemployment has decreased for men by 0.5 percentage points since January 2024 to 2.9%. Unemployment rates for women decreased by 0.7 percentage points to 2.9%. Women accounted for 47% of those unemployed in this age category in January 2025.