The number of people employed in the public sector fell by 8,200 on an annual basis in September, according to new figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The latest data indicates that a total of 360,900 people were employed in the sector at the end of September, compared to 369,100 a year earlier.
Over the 12-month period, employment in regional bodies fell from 40,400 to 37,000, a decrease of 3,400, while the number of people working in the civil service declined by 1 200 people to 38,100.
Employment in the health sector declined by 600 to 110,200 in the year to the end of September. During the same period the numbers employed in An Garda Siochána rose by 500 from 14,200 to 14,700.
In the four years to the end of this September, employment in the public sector grew by 17,300 to 360,900. The number of people working in the education sector rose by 12,500 over the same period from 84,700 to 97,200, while employment in An Garda Síochána increased by 2,400 from 12,300 to 14,700,
Employment in the health sector rose by 8,700 from to 110,200 in the four-year period under review.
From September 2005 to September 2009 employment in the semi-State sector fell from 57,400 to 52,300, a decrease of 5,100. This is due in part to the privatisation of some companies.
At the same time, the number of people working in regional bodies declined by 1,200 from 38,200 to 37,000.
