THE average person took home almost €40,000 last year, an increase of €1,234 on 2017.
However, our regular earnings reached just €35,615, with the remainder made up of irregular and overtime work.
Figures released by the Central Statistics Office show that those in the information and communication sectors have the highest earning power, taking home a weekly wage of €1.168.50.
That’s well above the overall weekly average of €757.21, and far eclipses the €354.96 average in the accommodation and food service activities sector.
Yet despite rising wages, 18.8 per cent of people are experiencing “enforced deprivation”, unable to afford basic items such as a weather appropriate clothing and a meal with chicken, meat or fish every second day.
MEN IN POWER
However, women still lag behind when it comes to occupying senior roles, with men occupying 93 per cent of company chairperson positions.
Women also account for just 28 per cent of senior executive roles.
And it seems discrimination is a continuing issue, with 17.7 per cent of adults reporting that they had experienced discrimination in the last two years.
Age discrimination was the most common grounds for complaint, followed by race, and gender.
EXPORTS DOWN
With Britain finally on the verge of a Brexit deal, statistics show that we’ve decreased our reliance on our nearest neighbour, as the percentage of exports it receives has fallen from twelve percent to 10 per cent.
Despite this, we still export €14 billion of goods there each year, while it accounts for €18.4bn or 20 per cent of all imports.
The snapshot of Ireland’s economy and society is revealed in the CSO’s Statistical Yearbook, which reveals that the full-time work force now stands at 1,838,100.
In a sign that we’re finally beginning to tackle the housing crisis, the number of new dwellings built last year reached 18.016, an increase of 25.3 per cent on the previous year.
However, while Dublin accounted for the majority of new builds, with 6,907, the nationwide picture painted a very different scenario.
Cork, Meath and Kildare all reported more than 1,200 completed builds, but the rate dropped to just 66 in Longford and 67 in Leitrim.
MOST READ IN MONEY
Meanwhile, the number of births continues to decline, at 61,016 last year.
There has also been a drop in the number of mothers under the age of 20, with just 980 last year, compared to 1,380 in 2013.
And couples are tying the knot later than ever, with the average age of marriage rising to 34.4 years for a bride and 36.4 years for grooms.