Northern Ireland at work
agendaNi analyses the latest figures for employment and self-employment in the region, including profiles for each of the 11 new council districts.
The Census of Employment is the most reliable guide to how jobs are distributed across the province; the most recent figures cover 2013.
This survey excludes agriculture, self-employed persons and the armed forces (see separate boxes) but does provide a localised breakdown of all other sectors in the economy, according to employment.
Within the overall employed workforce, the joint largest sectors (18 per cent each) are wholesale and retail and health and social work. These are followed by manufacturing (11 per cent), education (10 per cent) and public administration (8 per cent).
Most council areas have a steady ‘core’ of jobs in the wholesale, retail, education, and health and social work – with the latter including social care and administrative staff in the Health Service. Significant variations are found in the proportions employed in manufacturing and public administration, which reflect the distribution of factories and government offices. Mining and quarrying and transportation and storage tend to be highly localised as they depend on specific mineral resources and travel routes.
Antrim & Newtownabbey
Workforce: 55,079
The council area has the province’s largest employment share for health and social work (22 per cent), accounting for 11,978 jobs. Manufacturing is also a major sector, employing 6,407 people (12 per cent), including at Randox and Schrader. It has the largest transportation and storage hub (4,973 jobs), mainly based around Belfast International Airport.
Ards & North Down
Workforce: 37,044
Wholesale and retail is the leading sector (22 per cent) for Ards and North Down, which includes Bangor and Newtownards and several smaller towns. The area also boasts a relatively large share (9 per cent) in accommodation and food service: 3,470 jobs. As with many other parts of the Belfast commuter belt, a large number of local residents travel into the city for work.
Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon
Workforce: 68,004
Northern Ireland’s second largest manufacturing workforce (10,749 jobs) is mainly based in the Craigavon area, with Almac and Moy Park being the main anchors. This accounts for 16 per cent of total employment in Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon. A strong wholesale and retail sector is based on the area’s multiple town centres and out-of-town shopping facilities.
Belfast
Workforce: 210,424
Thirty per cent of Northern Ireland’s workforce works in Belfast and almost a quarter of these jobs are in administration. The wholesale and retail sector is proportionally below average (13 per cent) but still accounts for 26,802 jobs. The city’s manufacturing workforce employs 9,890 people but accounts for just
5 per cent of the workforce.
Causeway Coast & Glens
Workforce: 39,333
Accommodation and food service account for 3,666 jobs in Causeway Coast and Glens, not surprisingly due to its many tourist attractions. The council also has 3,519 jobs in manufacturing; both sectors make up 9 per cent shares of employment. Employment in education is above average, explained by the Ulster University campus at Coleraine and a large number of rural schools.
Derry & Strabane
Workforce: 50,253
Almost one in five of Derry and Strabane’s employees work in health and social work: 9,894 jobs. A similarly-sized workforce (9,291) is employed in wholesale and retail. Manufacturing accounts for 9 per cent of employees (4,616). In other sectors, the council is close to the regional average although it is keen to increase educational employment at Ulster University’s Magee campus.
Fermanagh & Omagh
Workforce: 38,444
Despite its largely rural character, Fermanagh and Omagh has a large number of manufacturing jobs: 4,463 (9 per cent). Well-known employers include Belleek Pottery, Balcas and the Quinn Group, recently renamed as Aventas. It also has small but locally significant numbers employed in mining and quarrying (272) and in primary industries other than agriculture (150), which include animal husbandry.
Lisburn & Castlereagh
Workforce: 51,483
The district has a broadly similar employment structure to that of its neighbours in the Belfast commuter belt. It also has particularly large workforces in health and social work (11,295 jobs; 22 per cent) and public administration (5,013 jobs; 10 per cent). Lisburn and Castlereagh has the smallest proportion of jobs in education (6 per cent), perhaps reflecting a different pattern of school or college provision and an older than average population.
Mid & East Antrim
Workforce: 42,402
A strong presence by Wrightbus, Caterpillar and other factory operators helps to explain why manufacturing accounts for 21 per cent of employees in Mid and East Antrim. This makes it the largest sector – with 8,875 jobs – and suppresses the proportion employed in health and social work (13 per cent). The district also has a strong wholesale and retail sector (19 per cent), which compares well with the regional average.
Mid Ulster
Workforce: 47,858
Large workforces at Moy Park and in Mid Ulster’s strong light engineering sector give it the province’s highest proportion of employees in manufacturing: 28 per cent. This accounts for 13,165 jobs. Employment levels in Mid Ulster’s other sectors are similar to those recorded in Mid and East Antrim. It also has the largest mining and quarrying sector (410 jobs) and the largest construction sector outside Belfast (3,808 jobs).
Newry, Mourne & Down
Workforce: 51,178
Wholesale and retail is the dominant sector in Newry, Mourne and Down, accounting for 21 per cent of employee jobs (10,786). It also has a large manufacturing sector, making up 12 per cent of jobs, including Norbrook and Kilkeel’s fish processing plants. The district also has the largest number outside Belfast working in water and waste sector (867 jobs) – partly explained by the reservoir and pipeline infrastructure in the Mourne area.
Self-employment
The number of self-employed people totals 118,900: 63,500 in services; 37,800 in production and construction; and 17,600 in agriculture, forestry and fisheries. The final figure includes 16,206 full-time farmers. A district-by-district breakdown of self-employment is not available.
The most recent Census of Agriculture analyses the agricultural labour force according to the former council areas. 47,874 people work in the sector with the largest districts, by workforce, being Fermanagh (5,192), Newry and Mourne (4,119), Armagh (3,892), and Omagh (3,628). Among the new councils, Fermanagh and Omagh has the largest share (9,311).
The agricultural labour force includes farm owners, their spouses and farm workers, including casual labourers. The self-employment and agricultural statistics relate to June 2014. In addition, 2,190 armed forces personnel were located in Northern Ireland in April this year.
