During the fourth quarter of 2014, Labour Force Survey estimates indicate an increase of 1.2 per cent in employment when compared to the corresponding quarter in 2013, the National Statistics Office said today.
Labour Force Survey estimates indicate that, during the fourth quarter last year, total employment stood at 180,124, accounting for half the population aged 15 and over. Unemployed persons stood at 11,195 (3.1 per cent) while inactive persons totalled 167,014 (46.6 per cent).
The activity rate was estimated at 65.5 per cent. The highest activity rate was recorded among persons aged 25-54 (79.0 per cent). There was no statistically significant change in the activity rate when compared to 2013 levels for the same quarter.
On average, out of every 100 persons aged 15 to 64, 62 were employed. The highest employment rate was recorded among persons aged between 25 and 54, and stood at 75.2 per cent. The male employment rate for this age bracket was 91.1 per cent while that for females stood at 58.6 per cent.
Employed men were mostly engaged in wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage, accommodation and food service activities (30.6 per cent). On the other hand, the largest percentage of employed women (37.5 per cent) were engaged in Public administration, defence, education, human health and social work activities.
Self-employed persons accounted for 13.7 per cent of the total employed population. The majority of employed persons worked on a full-time basis and totalled 152,417. An estimated 23,298 (12.9 per cent) had a part-time job as their primary employment. A further 4,409 were working on a full-time with reduced hours basis.
The average annual basic salary of employees for the fourth quarter of 2014 was estimated at €16,267. This amount refers to the annual basic salary and excludes extra payments such as overtime, bonuses and allowances, as explained in the methodological notes.
The highest average annual basic salary for employees was recorded in financial and insurance activities. Average annual salaries varied from €27,095 among managers to €10,784 among elementary occupations.
Survey results estimate that the unemployment rate for the fourth quarter of 2014, stood at 5.9 per cent. Among the unemployed, 47.5 per cent stated that they had been seeking work for at least 12 months.