Ireland’s unemployment rate was 4 per cent in March, rising slightly from the previous month, according to latest Central Statistics Office (CSO) data.
The national seasonally adjusted figure shows a rise from 3.9 per cent in February but marks a reduction from the 4.3 per cent rate in March of last year. A total of 114,800 people were unemployed last month, nearly 2,000 more than last month.
“There was a fall of 5,600 in the seasonally adjusted number of people unemployed in March 2025 when compared with March 2024,” noted Central Statistics Office (CSO) labour statistician Conor Delves.
Overall, 3.9 per cent of men were unemployed in March, unchanged from the revised rates in February, but significantly lower than the 4.2 per cent rate in March 2024.
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The unemployment rate for women rose slightly last month, reaching 4.1 per cent – up from a revised rate of 4.0 per cent last month but remains lower than the 4.3 per cent rate from March last year.
“The seasonally adjusted number of unemployed males rose to 59,000 in March 2025, compared with 58,200 in February 2025,” said Mr Delves, “The seasonally adjusted number of unemployed women in March 2025 was 55,800, up from 54,700 in February 2025.”
The youth unemployment rate, those aged 15-24 years, remained unchanged from last month at 11.6 per cent with the increase in headline rate being attributed to an increase in the unemployment rate for people aged 25-74 years from 2.8 per cent to 2.9 per cent in March.
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Andrew Webb, chief economist at Grant Thornton Ireland, said the imminent announcement of US tariffs from US President Donald Trump is causing “significant nervousness around the economy”.
“While we await the full detail, the prospect of tariffs has damaged business and consumer confidence. The latest unemployment numbers may add to the economic jitters, with almost 2,000 more people unemployed this month compared to last,” he said.
The Grant Thornton economist described the unemployment numbers as “disappointing” but said “there is some comfort that we enter this new phase of economic uncertainty from a position of strength, with the unemployment rate low by historical standards.”
Jack Kennedy, senior economist at jobs platform Indeed, noted that the current unemployment rate remains just above full employment despite the slight increase.
“At a time of increasing global uncertainty and potential threats to Ireland’s economic model, the country’s labour market continues to perform remarkably well,” he said.
Mr Kennedy said the Irish labour market is “predicted to remain tight with further job growth expected in the near to medium-term, but the current outlook may change subject to global trade volatility.”
