The unemployment rate for Catholics in the North is still much higher than for Protestants, according to a British government report released yesterday. It also showed low Catholic representation in large workplaces.
The Government Statistics and Research Agency figures showed the unemployment rate at 8.8 per cent for Catholics and 5 per cent for Protestants in 1999.
10 per cent of Catholic men were unemployed, compared to 6 per cent of Protestant men, and 7 per cent of Catholic women were out of work compared to 4 per cent of Protestant women. The agency said that although the imbalance still existed, it had narrowed in recent years. In 1993, 18.1 per cent of Catholics were unemployed, compared to 9.4 per cent of Protestants.
The 1999 figures, however, showed that among the unemployed a higher proportion of Catholics (55 per cent) than Protestants (45 per cent) had been unemployed for a year or more.
In 1999, the religious composition of those working in the North was 41 per cent Catholic and 59 per cent Protestant. Catholics made up 56 per cent of the unemployed while Protestants made up 44 per cent.
Protestant representation in employment was highest in the clerical and secretarial sectors (64 per cent) and sales (64 per cent), while Catholic representation was highest in personal and protective services occupations (48 per cent).
Protestant representation was highest in agriculture, hunting and forestry (68 per cent) and finance (68 per cent), while Catholic representation was highest in the building sector (57 per cent).
Catholic representation was highest in small-sized workplaces of 10 or fewer employees, (43 per cent) and lowest in workplaces employing 50 or more persons (38 per cent).
The highest level of qualification obtained by the economically active was similar for both communities.