Clare’s live register figures are indicating that employment growth in the county has slowed.
Last month saw the second straight month of rises in the unemployment indicator, which has shrunk by under 300 in the past year.
At the end of November some 4,528 people were claiming some form of unemployment benefit in Clare.
That’s a monthly increase of 120.
The figures actually improved in Ennis last month, by 12, and in East Clare, by 27.
But in the North Clare area – dole queues grew by 110, and in West Clare there was an increase of 49.
While the countywide figure is a welcome 286 smaller than at the same point last year, this rate of improvement has slowed significantly – in the previous year, it had shrunk by three times that amount.
Before the economic crash, Clare’s live register figure dipped below 3,500 at times but this trend, and ongoing issues affecting a number of the county’s larger employers, suggest those days could be some time off yet.
