An eighth of all jobs in Ireland are provided by foreign companies assisted by the state.

This is according to the Irish Times, which claims to have seen a report on the issue that demonstrated a 0.2 per cent rise in such roles during 2010 to just below 155,000.

Data from economic advisory organization Forfas showed despite a four per cent dip in employment last year, the workforce within state-assisted overseas businesses continued to expand, with the services sector driving the increase.

The news source also revealed 2010 witnessed a move from full-time to part-time jobs within foreign-owned firms, while IT jobs in Ireland climbed in state-assisted entities by around 1,850 to more than 60,000.

In April 2011, unemployment in the country stood at 14.6 per cent, falling by 0.1 percentage points from March as a result of 1,600 fewer people signing the state's live register, which now stands at 439,571.

Posted by Alex Donnell