Industrial employment has continued to fall, with the numbers employed in September down 14,800 on the same month last year, according to new figures. Average earnings in the sector are also falling.
The downward trend in industrial jobs is now ongoing for two years and the latest quarterly figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), published yesterday, show no sign of a let-up. After adjusting for normal seasonal trends, they show a 4,900 drop between June and September this year, with total employment in the sector now standing at 241,500.
Industrial employment exceeded 270,000 in 2001, but has since fallen consistently as companies are hit by the international slowdown. The rise of the euro and competitive pressure has also squeezed profits for many companies, while the movement of lower value production processes to cheaper locations is also talking a toll on jobs here.
The pressure on companies and the fall in inflation is being reflected in wages, with average earnings rising at an annual rate of 4 per cent in September, down from 7.6 per cent in June, according to separate CSO earnings data also published yesterday.
They show that average earnings per hour actually fell by 0.7 per cent over the quarter to €13.36. Average earnings per week fell by 0.2 per cent to €537.19 as the average hours per week rose 0.5 per cent to 40.2.
The main component of industrial employment is in the manufacturing sector, where employment of 223,700 in September was 12,900 down on a year earlier and 4,100 lower than June, after seasonal adjustment.
The breakdown of the figures shows the electrical and computer sector was one of the biggest losers, with a decline of 4,800 to 31,900 over the past year. Employment in this sector has fallen from a peak of more than 50,000 in late 2000/early 2001, hit by the bursting of the stockmarket tech bubble and the movement of assembly jobs to the Far East.
Most other sectors have also recorded declines in jobs over the past year, with the numbers employed in textiles and clothing down by 1,200 to 6,400, continuing a long-term decline in the sector which three years ago employed 11,000 people. A further 2,000 jobs were shed in the paper, paper products and publishing sector, which now employs 21,900.
Moving against the trend was the medical and precision instruments sector, which added 500 jobs and now employs 21,200 people.
The past two years have been difficult for the manufacturing sector, though there have been some signs of recovery in production in recent months. Figures published last week showed that seasonally adjusted manufacturing production in the August-October period was 5.5 per cent higher than the previous three months, while production in October was a hefty 12.9 per cent up on the same month in 2002.
This suggests that industry is starting to benefit from an international upturn, which should also in time benefit the jobs trend.
Recent quarterly figures for total employment suggests some fall-off during the summer months, with industrial employment falling and the service sector remaining steady.
Yesterday's manufacturing figures reflect the progressive loss of competitiveness against our main trading partners over the past three years and an inability to raise prices on weak international markets, according to IBEC, the employers' group.
"Unit labour costs in Ireland against the main industrialised economies have risen by 15 per cent since 2000 and factory gate prices for exported goods have fallen by roughly the same amount over the period," said IBEC senior economist Mr Aebhric Mc Gibney, leading to a squeeze on profits.
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