A second successive monthly rise was recorded in Clare’s live register last month.
9,285 people were signing on here at the end of last year, an annual fall of 680.
However, the number of people claiming supports jumped by 216 last month, with the majority of the rise seen in Ennis and in North Clare.
December marked the second consecutive month in which the number of people on Clare’s live register rose, with the figure now just under 9,300.
An extra 112 people joined the dole queues in Ennis, bringing the total number to over 5,100 while another significant hike was recorded in North Clare.
1,541 people are claiming benefits in the Ennistymon social welfare office, this figure has jumped by 17% since September.
Smaller rises were also recorded, West Clare seen an increase of 13 last month, while East Clare is up by 2.
Despite this, the joblessness situation appears to have improved in 2013.
In all, the number of people signing on throughout the county is down by 680 since the beginning of the year.
