Irish Employment Grows

Cork South West Labour Party TD Michael McCarthy has welcomed the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office which show that 29,000 more people are in work than in December 2014.

Deputy McCarthy commented: “The fact that so many more people are back in work than in December 2014 again demonstrates that Labour’s plan to create jobs and get people back to work is working.  

“Up to 1,000 jobs are now being created each week, which is in stark contrast to before Labour entered government when unemployment stood at 15.1%. Importantly, jobs are being created in every region of the country.

 “Behind these statistics are people who now have greater certainty in their lives because they are back at work and have a dependable income.  

“For the Labour Party, the focus is not just on the number of jobs created but also the quality of the jobs. We want to see decent, sustainable, well paid jobs created.

“This is why we have increased the minimum wage by 20% since entering government and we have strengthened the rights of workers to improve their pay and conditions.

“This year I am confident we will see more jobs created and incomes continue to increase for low and middle income workers. This is no small part down to the work Labour has done in government to deliver an economic and social recovery.”