First, the good news. The rise in unemployment is contracting. From a monthly high of 36,500 new people on the Live Register, the rise last month was a mere 4,300. Okay, still far too high but if unemployment is ever to be reversed it must first be slowed down. And slowing down it is. That’s [...]

Last month, Seán O’Riain wrote a post for progressive economy, which used the Quarterly Household Survey (Q1 2009 ) to throw some light on the class aspects of the recent rise in unemployment in Ireland.
the major trend that stands out is the disastrous collapse in working class employment with growing differences between the position of [...]

Higher and higher - that’s the way unemployment is going. Strange this is not getting the attention it deserves. While the media debates the fiscal meltdown, the ‘will-they-or-won’t they’ cut public sector wages (or just freeze them ad infinitum), a blood-letting is beginning in the labour force. Maybe it’s just that we [...]