There is a common perception in Ireland that Irish Travellers do not want to work, this is not true. The unemployment in the community is currently above 80% due to discrimination by employers, workplace racism, unconscious biases towards the community and a lack of support in training, apprenticeship, and educational achievements.

Among Traveller females, just 13.3% were educated to upper secondary level or above, compared with almost 7 in 10 (69.1%) of the general population. Nearly 6 in 10 male Travellers (57.2%) were educated to primary level at most, compared with just 13.6% of the general population. 

The 167 Travellers with a third-level qualification was almost double the 2011 figure of 89. One notable Irish Traveller, Sindy Joyce, celebrated receiving her PhD in Sociology in 2019, the first Traveller recognised to do so.