Unemployment steady in face of global uncertainty

New jobs data shows Australia’s labour market remains resilient in the face of increased global uncertainty and volatility.

Labour Force data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics today showed the unemployment rate stayed steady at 4.2 per cent in August.

Seasonally adjusted employment decreased marginally in August, by 5,400 although it remains 1.5 per cent above the level recorded a year ago.

Participation decreased slightly from 67.0 per cent in July to 66.8 per cent in August but remains historically high. Underemployment is at the lowest rate since August 2008.

Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Amanda Rishworth said today’s results continued to reflect the resilience of Australia’s economy, in an environment of considerable global uncertainty.

“Jobs growth in Australia is still leading the pack of major advanced economies, increasing by 8.5 per cent since the Albanese Government came into power in May 2022. And we’ve had the lowest average unemployment of any government in the last 50 years.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said today’s data from the ABS showed the resilience of Australia’s labour market in the face of global economic volatility.

“Unemployment is steady and this shows the resilience of Australia’s labour market in the face of global volatility,” he said.

“While jobs fell in the month, still more than 1.1 million jobs have been created on our watch and we’ve had the lowest average unemployment of any government in the last 50 years.

“The resilience of Australia’s labour market is one of our best buffers against the economic uncertainty coming at us from around the world.

“While other countries have seen much higher unemployment and even recessions, we’ve managed to get inflation down while preserving many of the gains we’ve made in our labour market, and that’s a big achievement.”