Revealed: the jobless blackspots crippled by coronavirus crisis
Counties that depend on tourism and retail are suffering the most
THE economic devastation caused by Covid19 has been laid bare, with new figures revealing that in some counties more than 40pc of the workforce is on State income supports.
It is an unequal picture across the country with the effects of lockdown being felt most severely in counties where a large proportion of workers are employed in tourism and retail.
In contrast, those with high numbers employed in manufacturing fared better.
Kerry workers have been worst hit nationwide, with more than 45pc dependent on State income supports such as the pandemic unemployment payment, wage subsidy and jobseeker benefits during the last lockdown.
New figures compiled by Central Bank economists for the Irish Independent reveal the Kingdom had the highest portion of workers on the three key State benefits towards the end of last year. Unemployment in the county was almost 25pc.
In comparison, the unemployment rate in Cork was 17pc as almost one in eight workers living there works in manufacturing – which is spared in Level 5 restrictions.
Meanwhile, the Government is likely to bow to pressure for new quarantining rules for people travelling into Ireland without a test showing they are Covid-free.
As levels of the virus in the community continue to fall, ministers meet today to discuss mandatory quarantine and tighter North-South border Covid checks.
THE economic devastation caused by Covid-19 has been laid bare with new figures revealing that in some counties more than 40pc of the workforce is on State income supports.
It’s an unequal picture across the country, with the effects of lockdown being felt most severely in those counties where a large proportion of workers are employed in tourism and retail.
In contrast, those with high numbers employed in manufacturing fared better.
Kerry workers have been worst hit, with more than 45pc dependent on State income supports during the last lockdown.
New figures compiled by Central Bank economists for the Irish Independent reveal the Kingdom had the highest proportion of workers on three key State benefits towards the end of last year.
They were the pandemic unemployment payment (PUP), wage subsidy and job seeker benefits.
Kerry was followed by Donegal, Dublin, Louth, Wexford and Carlow, which all had more than 40pc of their labour force on these income supports in November, just before restrictions eased.
Meanwhile, Roscommon, Laois, Meath, Kilkenny, Offaly and Cork had the lowest levels, with approximately 30pc or less of their workforces reliant on benefits. Kerry also had the highest unemployment rate of 24.9pc in November, according to separate unofficial data compiled by the bank, based on calculations by economists Reamonn Lydon and Luke McGrath.
Unemployment averaged 20pc of the labour force across the State during November, when workers affected by the virus are taken into account.
Dublin was slightly above average, while Limerick’s rate stood at over 23pc and Cork at 17pc. The lowest unemployment rate was 14.3pc in Kilkenny.
The Central Statistics Office does not publish data on the unemployment rate in the counties, which includes those affected by the pandemic.
“The information shows pandemic unemployment payment figures (and Covid-adjusted unemployment rates) are higher on a per capita basis in western counties in which the local labour force is more reliant on consumer-facing and labour-intensive sectors such as retail and accommodation,” said a Central Bank spokesperson. He said counties like Dublin had a higher share of jobs in ICT and finance and sectors that had a greater capacity for working from home.
Labour employment spokesperson Senator Marie Sherlock told the Irish Independent: “We know that retail, wholesale and the hospitality sector are the sectors heavily accounted for in those claiming the PUP payment at this point of time.”
She said there was a real concern now as the months went by, and the reopenings of many of these sectors were delayed, that those claiming the PUP payment would remain jobless.
“The key question then is what supports are put in place for them.”
Ms Sherlock said that from March to September, in Dublin last year, under-25s were on average 3.4 times more likely to be on the PUP than the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme.
“One of the biggest legacy issues from the pandemic that we are going to need to confront is the issue of joblessness, and particularly those young workers, and we need to ensure that there isn’t going to be a lost decade or lost years for this group of young people.
“They have already suffered so much as it is, and we need to make sure that there are very considerable resources and supports put in place to ensure that they get into employment and effectively get their lives back on track. When you think of the social impact, and the financial impact to that generation in particular, the pandemic has been devastating.”
Meanwhile, chief executive of Tralee Chamber Ken Tobin believes that with more investment in industry, there are huge opportunities for job creation.
“We are calling for a more proactive approach from the State agencies to provide these opportunities for Tralee and the county,” he said.
A recent economic letter by the Central Bank on the regional impact of Covid-19 said the type of economic activity in certain counties explained why unemployment numbers rose more in some parts of the country.
“Kerry has a greater share of workers in businesses directly affected by the restrictions, including accommodation, food and non-essential retail,” it said.
In Kerry, one in every 11 workers work in accommodation and food services. For the country, that figure is closer to one in 20.
In terms of unemployment, Dublin is broadly in line with the State average while Cork is faring better.
“In terms of keeping people in work, the exclusion of manufacturing from the Level 5 restrictions has been important for some parts of the country,” said the economic letter.
“In Cork for example, and according to the last census almost one in eight workers work in manufacturing. This is far higher than many counties, and the State as a whole, where the figure is closer to one in 11.”
Meanwhile, reacting to the figures, Donegal councillor Martin Farren (Labour) said the financial impact that Covid was having was devastating. “We just don’t know where it is all going to end,” he said.
He pointed out the only way of getting back to a normal way of life was when the vast majority of people are vaccinated.
Mr Farren said that on the Inishowen peninsula, many businesses depended on tourism, and that sector was still facing months of uncertainty.
He urged that whatever supports are required for the tourism, trade and small business sector, must be given.
‘When you think of the social impact, the pandemic has been devastating’