Latest news with #SeanCrick
ABC News
18 hours ago
- Business
- ABC News
More than a million unemployed Australians job ready as 'deeply concerning' data released
One in 10 Australians have been in their current job for more than 20 years, as the national job mobility rate decreased for a second year. Just under 8 per cent of employed people – 1.1 million workers – changed jobs in the past year, according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). At the same time, the annual retrenchment rate – the number of employees dismissed for financial reasons – increased to 1.9 per cent. About 2.2 million people left or lost their jobs for various reasons. The numbers have been labelled "deeply concerning" by social services advocates, who have called for an overhaul in the employment sector. ABS head of statistics Sean Crick said there was a "small decrease" in job mobility to 7.7 per cent. The figure is down from 8 per cent last year, and 9.6 per cent in 2023. "This follows a rise in job mobility over the COVID period, where the job mobility rate increased to 9.6 per cent in February 2023," Mr Crick said. "Of the 1.1 million who changed jobs during the year to February 2025, almost two-thirds (62 per cent) remained in the same occupation." An ABS spokesperson told the ABC the job mobility rate had spiked "leading up to the recession of the early 90s" to almost 20 per cent. "[This was before] declining considerably during the recession, down to around 12 per cent," they said. "Since then, it has declined to under 8 per cent. "Job mobility, underemployment and potential workers have declined a bit over the last few years. "Like unemployment, potential workers and underemployment tend to follow the business cycle, so have had periods of increasing and decreasing.' There were 1.7 million people not working but wanting to work as of February 2025 – labelled "potential workers". Of those potential workers, more than 1 million were available to start work in the previous week before being surveyed. Another 311,300 were available to start within four weeks. "People who were unavailable to work in the short to medium term may not begin looking for work until it is closer to the time when they will be able to work,' the ABS said. "There were 596,100 people who wanted to work, were available to start either immediately or within four weeks, but did not actively look for work." The main reasons those potential workers gave included attending education and needing childcare. Australian Council of Social Services chief executive Cassandra Goldie said there was a "clear mismatch" in the labour market. "There is … a steady decline in entry-level jobs making it harder for people to transition into paid employment, especially those on income support," she told the ABC. "People are struggling to look for work while surviving on woefully low JobSeeker payments that trap them into poverty. "It's hard to look for work if you can't afford rent, transport, internet or even food." There were also 719,300 people permanently unable to work. Dr Goldie said the government needed to "move beyond punitive compliance" and "deliver real solutions" for employment. "We need to overhaul employment services and invest in tailored, quality employment programs that support people to transition into secure, suitable work, lift income support payments to liveable levels and a commitment to ambitious employment targets," she said. "We also need to end harmful payment suspensions and cancellations, which damage people's capacity to find employment." Many jobseekers also reported feeling discouraged when it came to searching for work. They cited concerns about qualifications, age and health conditions as their main barriers to finding employment. This was in line with ACOSS's 2024 Faces of Unemployment report, which found people with a disability or health concerns were also likely to be older, with both factors putting them at higher risk of long-term unemployment. "We know that people with partial work capacity, older people and First Nations people face persistent barriers to paid work, including workplace discrimination, a lack of appropriate roles in their communities, and employment services that are failing to support them," Dr Goldie said. "The decline in job mobility combined with high numbers of job losses is deeply concerning. For people on low incomes or facing disadvantage in the labour market, it often means they are being shut out completely. This month the ABS reported the unemployment rate had risen to 4.3 per cent in June. This meant there were an additional 34,000 unemployed people nationwide. Along with unemployed people, the ABS also released new data relating to "underemployed" workers. This referred to those who had either worked less than their usual hours or those who would prefer to work more than they usually did. As of February 2025, there were 818,900 part-time workers who wanted to work more hours, "with almost half preferring to work full-time". Of the total 1.5 million underemployed people, 321,100 had had their hours reduced.
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Shock jump in unemployment rate
Australia's unemployment rate has shocked expectations and jumped, with less Aussies in the workforce. Fresh figures released by the ABS shows the unemployment rate rose to 4.3 per cent last month, beating expectations of 4.1 per cent. Employment as a whole rose by 2000 people this month, following a fall of 1000 in May, and is up 2 per cent year on year. The rise in unemployment was determined as 33,600 workers became unemployed in the month of June. This was against expectations of 20,000 jobs to be added in the month and the unemployment rate to hold. The underemployment rate also increased to 6 per cent, as 40,200 part time roles were created and 38,200 full time roles were lost from the job market. The employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.2 per cent, and the participation rate, being people who are actively working, rose to 67.1 per cent. Hours worked fell 0.9 per cent in June, following a rise of 1.4 per cent in May. ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said: 'This month we saw a decrease in full time hours worked, down 1.3 per cent, associated with a 0.4 per cent fall in full time employees.' Prior to Thursday's official announcement, experts had tipped the unemployment rate to remain at 4.1 per cent, although they did predict a tightening of the jobs market. The Reserve Bank of Australia will be watching the jobless rate ahead of its next meeting, having the dual mandate of employment and controlling inflation. 'I think the focus for the RBA will be ensuring the labour market remains healthy going forward,' NAB's head of Australian economics Gareth Spence said. 'The timing of cuts is not super important. 'It's more about where do they end up.' In a move that shocked markets and disappointed homeowners, the RBA kept the official cash rate at 3.85 per cent during its July 8 meeting. Most economists had already pencilled in a rate cut as well as another cut in August. Inicia sesión para acceder a tu portafolio
West Australian
17-07-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Employment rises by 2,000 but jobless rate jumps
Australia's unemployment rate has shocked expectations and jumped, with less Aussies in the workforce. Fresh figures released by the ABS shows the unemployment rate rose to 4.3 per cent last month, beating expectations of 4.1 per cent. Employment as a whole rose by 2000 people this month, following a fall of 1000 in May, and is up 2 per cent year on year. The rise in unemployment was determined as 33,600 workers became unemployed in the month of June. This was against expectations of 20,000 jobs to be added in the month and the unemployment rate to hold. The underemployment rate also increased to 6 per cent, as 40,200 part time roles were created and 38,200 full time roles were lost from the job market. The employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.2 per cent, and the participation rate, being people who are actively working, rose to 67.1 per cent. Hours worked fell 0.9 per cent in June, following a rise of 1.4 per cent in May. ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said: 'This month we saw a decrease in full time hours worked, down 1.3 per cent, associated with a 0.4 per cent fall in full time employees.' Prior to Thursday's official announcement, experts had tipped the unemployment rate to remain at 4.1 per cent, although they did predict a tightening of the jobs market. The Reserve Bank of Australia will be watching the jobless rate ahead of its next meeting, having the dual mandate of employment and controlling inflation. 'I think the focus for the RBA will be ensuring the labour market remains healthy going forward,' NAB's head of Australian economics Gareth Spence said. 'The timing of cuts is not super important. 'It's more about where do they end up.' In a move that shocked markets and disappointed homeowners, the RBA kept the official cash rate at 3.85 per cent during its July 8 meeting. Most economists had already pencilled in a rate cut as well as another cut in August.
Perth Now
17-07-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Shock jump in unemployment rate
Australia's unemployment rate has shocked expectations and jumped, with less Aussies in the workforce. Fresh figures released by the ABS shows the unemployment rate rose to 4.3 per cent last month, beating expectations of 4.1 per cent. Employment as a whole rose by 2000 people this month, following a fall of 1000 in May, and is up 2 per cent year on year. The rise in unemployment was determined as 33,600 workers became unemployed in the month of June. This was against expectations of 20,000 jobs to be added in the month and the unemployment rate to hold. The underemployment rate also increased to 6 per cent, as 40,200 part time roles were created and 38,200 full time roles were lost from the job market. Australia's unemployment rate unexpectedly rose in June. NewsWire / David Geraghty Credit: News Corp Australia The employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.2 per cent, and the participation rate, being people who are actively working, rose to 67.1 per cent. Hours worked fell 0.9 per cent in June, following a rise of 1.4 per cent in May. ABS head of labour statistics Sean Crick said: 'This month we saw a decrease in full time hours worked, down 1.3 per cent, associated with a 0.4 per cent fall in full time employees.' Prior to Thursday's official announcement, experts had tipped the unemployment rate to remain at 4.1 per cent, although they did predict a tightening of the jobs market. The Reserve Bank of Australia will be watching the jobless rate ahead of its next meeting, having the dual mandate of employment and controlling inflation. 'I think the focus for the RBA will be ensuring the labour market remains healthy going forward,' NAB's head of Australian economics Gareth Spence said. 'The timing of cuts is not super important. 'It's more about where do they end up.' In a move that shocked markets and disappointed homeowners, the RBA kept the official cash rate at 3.85 per cent during its July 8 meeting. Most economists had already pencilled in a rate cut as well as another cut in August.
Epoch Times
15-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Unemployment Holds at 4.1 Percent as Job Market Absorbs More Workers
Australia's unemployment rate stayed steady at 4.1 percent in April, even as more people entered the job market and total employment continued to grow. According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), the economy added 89,000 jobs last month. The number of unemployed people also rose slightly—by 6,000—as more Australians actively looked for work. This marks the second consecutive month with a 4.1 percent unemployment rate, following a small increase from 4.0 percent in March. Over the past 12 months, employment has grown by 390,000 people, or 2.7 percent. That's ahead of the 2.1 percent growth in the working-age population, showing the labour market is absorbing new entrants at a strong pace. Women Lead Employment Gains Women accounted for the majority of new roles in April, with female employment rising by 65,000, or 0.9 percent. Most of that growth came from full-time jobs, which climbed by 42,000 (1.1 percent), while part-time roles added 23,000 (0.8 percent). Related Stories 4/17/2025 3/4/2025 By comparison, male employment rose by 24,000, an increase of just 0.3 percent. Sean Crick, ABS head of labour statistics, noted a significant rise in participation among Australians aged 35 to 44. Their participation rate has grown 1.9 percentage points over the past year, reaching 88.3 percent in April. The overall participation rate—the share of working-age people either working or looking for work—rose by 0.3 percentage points to 67.1 percent. The employment-to-population ratio, which reflects the proportion of people with jobs, also climbed to 64.4 percent, just shy of January's record high of 64.5 percent. Despite the job growth, total monthly hours worked rose only slightly in April—up by 630,000 hours, or effectively unchanged at 0.0 percent. This suggests some of the new employment may have been part-time or involved shorter hours. Underemployment, Underutilisation Edge Up The underemployment rate, which measures those working fewer hours than they want, inched up to 6 percent in April, a 0.1 point rise from March. Still, it remains 0.5 percentage points below April 2024 levels, and 2.7 points lower than in March 2020, before the full impact of pandemic policies hit. The broader underutilisation rate, which combines both unemployed and underemployed people, rose by 0.2 points to 10.1 percent. This is still down 3.8 percentage points compared to March 2020. Treasurer Jim Chalmers has hailed these numbers, saying the Labor government continues to maintain historically low unemployment. 'While there are still challenges in our economy and people are still under pressure, we still have Australia's lowest average unemployment rate of any government in over 50 years,' he said. Job Ads Show Signs of Recovery Private-sector data also suggests stabilisation in the labour market. According to Seek's April report, the number of job ads rose by 1.8 percent last month following two months of decline. Queensland led the rebound, with listings up 7.6 percent, while South Australia's job ads were 5.6 percent higher than a year earlier. Hospitality and tourism topped industry growth, with ads climbing 9.8 percent—likely due to seasonal hiring. Healthcare and medical jobs rose by 3.8 percent, bouncing back from a steep drop in March. Blair Chapman, SEEK's senior economist, said the recent trend shows employers are returning to the market. However, month-to-month variation remains due to factors like the timing of Easter and ANZAC Day. 'Looking through the recent month-on-month noise, we continue to see job ads stabilise in line with our expectations,' he said. On an annual basis, Seek reported that the rate of job ad decline has slowed to 5.7 percent—the smallest drop since December 2022.
