The State has one of the highest share of jobless households in Europe, according to new research.

The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) study, written by Brian Nolan and Bertrand Maitre, shows 12 per cent of Irish households with people of working age, have no earners. This compares to 8 per cent in Britain, and just 6 per cent in France, Germany, Spain and Sweden.

The report authors suggest that this is an important factor in the State’s relatively high level of market income inequality.

“Our findings reinforce once again the salience of household joblessness and thus of policies to combat it,” the authors said.

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“An effective policy response will have to operate at those levels in a coherent way and encompass the way social protection (including for housing costs) is provided, targeted training and support in job search and acquisition, childcare provision and financing, and industrial policies, including support for enterprise in the areas most affected,” they added.