Ireland's recession means jobs for welfare workers

DUBLIN, IRELAND: Lost your job in Ireland? There's at least one place in town looking for more workers, the welfare office.

The Irish government says it's hiring another 115 people to handle the overflow of welfare applications as recession ravages the employment market.

Social and Family Affairs Minister Mary Hanafin says the extra staff members are needed because the existing 2,000 welfare workers can't keep up with the volume.

Ireland was long the fastest-growing economy in western Europe, but that's rapidly changed this year. Unemployment has risen 60 percent to a decade high of 7.8 percent.

Friday's government announcement came a day after economists forecast that joblessness could top 10 percent next year and reach 12 percent in 2010.