February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
The biggest changes affect women, according to last year’s census results. They now make up 47 percent of the labor force, up from just 28 percent in 1971. After World War II, the 1946 Census showed that only 12 percent of women had jobs outside the home.
The percentage of women describing their status as “engaged in home duties/looking after home/family” declined from 70 percent in 1971 to 27 percent last year.
Without exception, females now exceed males of all ages between 15 and 24 in education. The gap is widest for 18 year olds with over 75 percent of girls in education compared to 60 percent of boys.
Underlying the new prosperity has been job growth — with employment increasing by 25 percent in the six years to 2002.
However the benefits were not spread evenly. Donegal was the worst county unemployment black spot with almost 16 percent jobless. The worst area within a county for jobs was Knocknalower, near Belmullet, Co. Mayo, where unemployment was over 40 percent last year.
The prospects for work were greatest in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, south of Dublin City, with almost 6 percent jobless. Counties Kildare and Cork were next lowest at just over 6 percent.
Work on the land has plummeted. In 1926, over 50 percent relied on farming to make their living but the figure was down to under 6 percent last year.
Those involved in agriculture work the longest hours — over 55 a week — while teachers have it best with under 30 hours a week. On average, men work over 42 hours a week, 10 hours more than women.
The love affair with the car has seen ownership rise to over 86 percent in rural areas and 73 percent in urban areas. The trend in both areas has been sharply upward since the early 1990s. Over a million households now have at least one car.
Workers are now traveling an average of almost 10 miles to their jobs every day and the downside is increasing traffic congestion. People spend longer commuting, with average 28-minute journey times for urban dwellers and 26 minutes for rural workers.
The bicycle is becoming an endangered species for commuting — plummeting from 5.6 percent in 1986 to 2.1 percent now. Despite snarled up roads, the car is dominating with use of buses and motorcycles also falling.
The day of walking to school is also disappearing. More than half of primary school children are now driven to school compared to one in five 20 years ago. The number walking has halved to 26 percent.
Ireland’s tradition of owner-occupied homes is also slipping as a result of soaring property prices. Home ownership dropped to 77 percent — the first time a decline was recorded in recent decades. Rented dwellings almost doubled since 1991, following declines for the previous 30 years.
New questions in the census show that over 43 percent of households now have computers and over 34 percent have access to the Internet.
Over 8 percent said they had a long-lasting health problem or disability and almost 5 percent of the adult population said they provided regular, unpaid care to a friend or family member. One in 10 older women described themselves as carers.