Taoiseach Brian Cowen has said the latest Live Register figures are a signal of stabilisation in the employment figures.
New figures for February from the Central Statistics Office show that the register now stands at a total of 436,956.
When seasonal factors are taken into account, the Live Register fell by 2,300 in February to stand at 432,400 from 434,700 in January.
The CSO says that in the year to February 2010, there was an unadjusted increase in the Live Register of 84,503 - up 24%.
This compares with an increase of 110,664 (33.9%) in the year to January 2010.
The seasonally-adjusted January figure had been the biggest increase since August of last year.
Men accounted for 2,000 of the February decrease, while 300 women lost their jobs last month.
The estimated unemployment rate eased to 12.6% last month from 12.7% in January.
Speaking in the Dáil, Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the January figures of 434,000 pointed to an appalling failure of Government.
He called on the Taoiseach to break out of his 'tribal jacket' and listen to Opposition plans for job creation.
Labour leader Eamon Gilmore said 340 people on average have lost their jobs every day since Mr Cowen became Taoiseach.
Mr Gilmore said there was no stability in being employed and there was no stability when people could not get a reply from the social welfare offices.
He said the only concern about jobs in the Government was the Green Party's concern for their own jobs.
The Taoiseach said the Opposition theory was that jobs could be created in a vacuum.
INOU wants help for unemployed
The Irish National Organisation for the Unemployed has welcomed the reduction in the seasonally adjusted Live Register figures.
However, its Head of Policy and Media, Bríd O'Brien, said it seemed that the reduction may be due to unemployed people whose entitlement to Jobseekers Benefit has ended, failing to lodge a claim for Jobseekers Allowance, which is means tested.
She said many people may not be lodging such claims because their spouse or partner is working, and they believe they would therefore not be entitled to the allowance.
The INOU is urging the Government to do more to help those out of work get back to work.
It says providing retraining places is no use if there are no jobs for the people to enter when they have finished.
