The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (05 December 2023) published Census of Population 2022 Profile 7 - Employment, Occupations and Commuting
Tá leagan Gaeilge den leathanch seo ar fáil. Féach Daonáireamh 2022 Próifíl 7 - Fostaíocht, Slite Beatha agus Comaitéireacht.
The number of people working rose by 16% to 2.3 million in April 2022 with every county showing employment growth.
The census unemployment rate in April 2022 was 8%, down from 13% in Census 2016 and from 19% from Census 2011.
The number of retirees increased at a faster rate (21%) than workers (16%) since 2016, with 660,000 people indicating they were retired in 2022.
Almost a quarter of all females were working part-time while 7% of males worked part-time.
Almost a third of workers (750,000 people) worked from home at least one day a week.
The industrial sector which saw the largest growth in workers (+37,000 people) since 2016 was Other Human Health Activities which includes such professions as physiotherapy and occupational therapy.
There were 3.2 million people travelling to school, work, or college in Census 2022, up 8% since 2016. The car remained the most popular mode of transport for workers and school-goers.
The average travel time continued to climb, up from 26.6 minutes in Census 2011 to 29.1 minutes in Census 2022.
| Kathleen Goulding | (+353) 1 895 1413 |
|---|---|
| Tony Downes | (+353) 1 895 1319 |
| censuspublicity@cso.ie | |
| pressoffice@cso.ie |
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Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (05 December 2023) released Census 2022 Profile 7 Employment, Occupations & Commuting. Commenting on the results, Dr Tracy Clegg, Statistician in the Census Division, said: “The report looks at people who were at work or unemployed, people’s occupations and the type of industrial sectors they work in, as well as the commuting patterns of workers, students, and children in school or childcare. New for Census 2022 were the additional topics of commuting to childcare, part-time working, working from home, and the recording of the time people left the workplace, school, college or childcare setting, which gives a more rounded picture of travelling patterns.
In April 2022 the number of people in work was more than 2.3 million, a rise of 16% since 2016. The census unemployment rate decreased from 13% in 2016 to 8% and was down in every age group. The number of retired people grew by 21% from more than 545,000 to almost 660,000 people. Interestingly this is a higher rate of increase than the growth in the number of people at work (16%). One in three workers indicated they worked from home at least one day a week (750,000).
Ways of commuting, journey times and distances travelled all form part of the information available in Profile 7. The car remained the main mode that most commuters used to travel to work at 1.3 million people (63% of workers) while the bus was the most common mode among students going to college (25%).”
Employment, Occupations & Commuting – Some Highlights
People At Work and Outside the Labour Force
The number of people working increased by 16% to 2.3 million in April 2022. This included 1.1 million female workers and 1.2 million male workers. Employment rose in every county, though the size of the increase varied significantly. Longford had the largest growth at 30%, followed by Carlow and Meath, both at 22%. Kerry had the lowest at 10%.
There were almost 660,000 retired people in Census 2022 compared with more than 545,000 in Census 2016, up 21%. Interestingly this is a higher rate of increase than the growth in the number of people at work. It was the first time there were more female retirees (342,000) than male (316,000). The downward trend in the numbers of people looking after home/family continued in Census 2022 to 272,318 people, down by 11% since Census 2016. The number has more than halved since 1986. The vast majority of people in this category were female (90%). The number of people who were unable to work due to permanent ill health/disability rose by 20% to 189,308 people.
For the first time, a question on full-time and part-time employment was included in the census. Analysis shows that 14% of workers worked part-time. Females, at 23%, were much more likely than males (7%) to work part-time.
Where People Worked
Looking at the growth in employment by industrial group since 2016, the largest increase was in Other Human Health Activities (including therapeutic services, optician services, ambulance services, blood banks, and vaccine clinics), up by more than 37,000 workers. The number of people working in IT Activities rose by almost 31,000 workers, while there were over 23,000 more people working in Public Administration. The total number of people working in Public Administration was 107,000 as of April 2022, making it the largest sector. There were also some notable declines in employment, including a fall of more than 8,000 workers in Farming and more than 6,500 in Wholesale of Food.
Working from Home
Nearly a third of workers (750,000) worked from home at least one day a week. One in three of these worked from home five or more days a week, 26% worked three to four days, and 32% worked one to two days at home. Workers in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown were the most likely to work from home with 57% working from home one or more days a week. Just 21% of workers in Monaghan and Longford worked from home.
Unemployment
The Census 2022 unemployment rate was 8%, down from 13% in 2016 and from 19% in 2011. This included a long-term unemployment (12 months or more) rate of 4%. The counties with the highest unemployment rates were Louth, Longford, and Donegal, all at 11%. Cork County and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the lowest rate at 6% each. The highest long-term unemployment rates were in Donegal and Louth, both at 6%. Cork County and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the lowest, both at 3%.
Travelling to Work
There were 3.2 million people travelling to school, work, or college in 2022. This was up 8% since 2016. Most journeys were still by car, making up 63% of all work journeys. However, this was down from 66% in 2016. More than 70% of workers in counties Galway and Roscommon drove to work, while fewer than 30% did so in Dublin City.
Walkers made up 9% of all work commuters, which was down from 15% in 1986. The highest proportions of walkers were in Galway City and Dublin City at 16% and 18% respectively. Commuting by bus was at a similar level as in 2016 at 6%. The highest proportion of commuters who used the bus was in Dublin City at 15%. Commuters using the Train, Dart, or Luas also made up 3% of work commuters, unchanged since 2011. Cyclists made up 3% of work commuters, unchanged from 2016 but down from 7% in 1986. Dublin City had the highest share at 10% while Donegal and Cavan were the lowest at 0.5%.
The average travel time continued to rise, going from 26.6 minutes in 2011 to 29.1 minutes in 2022. The average distance of the work commute nationally was just under 17 kilometres, up from 15km in 2016.
Travelling to School, College, or Childcare
Almost 160,000 preschool children (aged 0-4 years) travelled to childcare or school. The vast majority travelled by car (119,000). More than 563,000 primary school children (aged 5-12 years) travelled to school (up 3% since Census 2016). The car remains the main mode of transport with 55% of children being driven to school, down from 60% in Census 2016. The number of children cycling to school rose by 88% to almost 14,000 while more than 133,000 children walked to school, up 4% since Census 2016. Another 9% went by bus.
More than 388,000 secondary school children (aged 13-18 years) travelled to school (up 11% since Census 2016). The car was also their main mode of transport with 41% being driven to school, down from 42% in Census 2016. The numbers cycling to school rose by 79% to more than 13,000, while almost 77,800 children walked to school, up 5% since Census 2016. A bus was used by 26% of secondary school students for their travel to school. For the 201,000 third level students, categorised as aged 19 and over, the most common way of travelling to college was by bus at 25%. Just under a quarter of students drove a car while 20% walked and 8% travelled by Train/Dart/Luas. Just 4% cycled.