The number of people aged 15 to 89 years in the labour force increased by 31,300 or 1.1% to 2,990,200 people in the 12 months to Quarter 2 (Q2) 2026.
The number of people aged 15 to 89 years in employment rose by 21,200 in Q2 2026 to 2,839,300 people, an increase of 0.8% from Q2 2025.
The employment rate for people aged 15 to 64 years was 74.3% in Q2 2026, down from 74.7% in Q2 2025.
There were 151,000 unemployed people aged 15 to 74 years in Q2 2026 using International Labour Organisation (ILO) criteria, with an associated unemployment rate of 5.1%, up from 4.8% in Q2 2025.
The estimated labour market participation rate in Q2 2026 was 66.0%, down from 66.4% in Q2 2025.
The estimated total number of hours worked per week in Q2 2026 was 89.0 million hours, unchanged when compared with Q2 2025.
The headline table shows the numbers and rates for employed and unemployed people. It also shows those working in the labour force and those not in the labour force. It highlights the annual change to Q2 2026.
| Table 1.1 Labour Force Survey Summary Results | ||
| Indicator | Q2 2026 | Annual change 1 |
| Employed persons aged 15-89 years | 2,839,300 | +21.2 |
| Employment rate for those aged 15-64 years | 74.3% | -0.4 pp |
| Unemployed persons aged 15-74 years | 151,000 | +10,100 |
| Unemployment rate for those aged 15-74 years | 5.1% | +0.3pp |
| In labour force | 2,990,200 | +31,300 |
| Not in labour force | 1,543,000 | +43,400 |
| 1 pp refers to percentage point change | ||
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is a continuous household survey carried out by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and is the official source for employment and unemployment estimates in Ireland.
The official labour market classification of respondents to the LFS is based on International Labour Organisation (ILO) concepts and definitions.
All European Union (EU) Member States are legally obliged to carry out a Labour Force Survey and to provide these data to Eurostat on a quarterly basis, as set out in the Integration of European Social Statistics (IESS) framework regulation (EU 2019/1700) and Implementing Regulation (EU 2019/2240), which apply from 01 January 2021.
Learn about our data and confidentiality safeguards, and the steps we take to produce statistics that can be trusted by all.
Statistician's Comment
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (20 August 2026) published results from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) for Quarter 2 2026.
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) is the official measure of employment and unemployment in Ireland. Thousands of households from around the country take part in this survey every three months, providing detailed information on employment, unemployment, labour force participation and other aspects of the labour market.
Commenting on today’s release, Colin Hanley, Statistician in the Labour Market & Earnings Division, said: “The estimated number of people in employment in Q2 2026 stood at 2,839,300, an increase of 21,200 or 0.8% when compared with Q2 2025.”
Employment
An estimated 589,600 or 20.8% of those in employment worked part-time, and 153,800 or 26.1% of those in part-time employment were classified as underemployed (i.e. they would like to work more hours for more pay).
In the 12 months to Q2 2026 the age group with the highest employment rate was the 45 to 54 years age group (85.8%), which was up 0.7 percentage points from the 85.1% recorded in Q2 2025. The lowest employment rate by age was observed in the 15 to 19-year-old group at 25.6%.
The largest increase in employment by economic sector was in Education (Q), which rose by 14,200 people (+5.9%). The largest decline in employment was in Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (N), down by 17,100 people (-8.2%).
Employment Status
The estimated number of employees was 2,456,900 in Q2 2026, an increase of 18,300 people or 0.7% compared with Q2 2025. The estimated number of self-employed was 359,200 in Q2 2026, an increase of 2,800 people or 0.8% compared with Q2 2025.
Extent of Working from Home
The number of people who worked from home fell by 22,500, or 2.2% to 990,600 in Q2 2026, compared with Q2 2025. At the same time, those that never worked from home rose by 43,800, or 2.4% to 1,839,400.
Hours Worked
The estimated total number of hours worked in Q2 2026 was 89 million hours per week, unchanged when compared with Q2 2025.
The year-on-year change in hours worked varied across the different economic sectors. Education (Q) saw an additional 600,000 hours worked, while the Transportation & Storage (H) sector and Financial, Insurance & Real Estate Activities (L-M) saw an additional 300,000 hours worked, when compared with Q2 2025. The largest sectoral fall in hours worked were in Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities (N) (-800,000 hours) and the Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing (A) sector, which was down 300,000 hours in the year to Q2 2026.
Unemployment
The number of people aged 15 to 74 years who were unemployed in Q2 2026 stood at 151,000, with an associated Unemployment Rate of 5.1%.
The unemployment rate for males were unchanged at 5.0% while the female unemployment rate increased 0.7 percentage points to 5.2%.
There were 38,900 people in long-term unemployment (unemployed for 12 months or longer) in Q2 2026, 7,200 more people than in Q2 2025. The corresponding rate of long-term unemployment was 1.3%, up from 1.1% a year earlier."
Survey Participation
Commenting on the importance of sampled individuals taking part in the LFS, Colin Hanley added: “Sampled households receive introductory letters by post asking them to take part in the Labour Force Survey. A person from a participating household completes the interview either by telephone or by a CSO interviewer visiting the household.
Household surveys give us a picture of the economic and social situation of the citizens of Ireland with a level of accuracy that no one else can gain. If you are asked to take part in a CSO survey, please do so. We count on you to take part in our surveys, and you can count on us to provide accurate statistics that reflect our society.”
As this release is based on the responses you give us and standard International Labour Organisation definitions, the results can be used to reliably compare employment and unemployment trends in Ireland with those abroad. See our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for more information on survey data and administrative data.