The COVID-19 adjusted unemployment rate for September 2021 was 10%, including those on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP), new CSO figures show.

The seasonally adjusted monthly unemployment rate in September was 6.6% for males and 6.3% for females, 17.4% for 15-24-year-olds, and 4.7% for 25-74-year-olds.

An unemployment rate of 6.4% for all persons was down from a revised rate of 6.5% in August, and 7.2% in September 2020.

Females

The PUP-inclusive rate of 10% was down from 12.4% in August, and 15.9% in September 2020.

Taking the figures by sex, 10.4% of males and 9.6% of females in the labour force were unemployed, with a jobless rate of 19.6% for those aged 15-24, and 8.4% for those aged 25- 74.

Statistician John Mullane said that if all claimants of the PUP were classified as unemployed, this adjusted measure   indicated a rate of 10% for all persons, with a rate of 10.4% for males and 9.6% for females.

“Breaking the results down by broad age group, the COVID-19 Adjusted Measure of Unemployment indicates a rate of 19.6% for those aged 15 to 24 years and 8.4% for those aged 25 to 74 years,” he said.