Figures from the Central Statistics Office has shown that public sector earnings rose by 4.3 per cent from June 1996 to June 1997 and by 1.2 per cent in the three months between March and June last year.

The biggest increase in public sector earnings was in the prison service, where they rose by 9.9 per cent in the year to June 1997, almost entirely due to an increase in overtime.

Other CSO figures have shown employment in the construction industry has continued to soar, with numbers employed by private firms up 8.9 per cent in the 12 months between November 1996 and November 1997.