DUBLIN (Reuters) - Ireland's unemployment rate fell less than expected in the first quarter, data showed on Monday, dropping to 12 percent from 12.2 percent the previous quarter, in another blow to the government after bruising local elections at the weekend.
The headline rate, which hit a high of 15.1 percent two years ago, fell for the eighth quarter in a row but not as far as the 11.8 percent estimated in monthly unemployment claims data, leaving the rate above the euro zone average of 11.8 percent.
The number of people in work rose by just 1,700 or 0.1 percent quarter-on-quarter compared to a 10,600 gain in the fourth quarter of last year, the Central Statistics Office said on Monday.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin)