Study finds 20,000 gave up looking for work during crisis

Economists argue jobless figures not capturing full picture of labour market

Thousands ended up outside labour market during downturn. Pic: RollingNews.ie

A study published by the Central Bank has suggested that there is room for the economy to continue growing strongly without a risk of overheating.

An economic letter by economists Stephen Byrne and Thomas Conefrey analyses how many people currently outside the labour market could regain employment.

It finds that a large number of workers – more than 20,000 – gave up looking for work entirely during the financial and economic crisis of 2008-2012, while some returned to education or training. These people are known as “discouraged” unemployed, and they are not included inofficial unemployment statistics.