🗞️Unemployment Rate in Australia Increases to 4.1% in April
Today’s email is brought to you by Empower your podcasting vision with a suite of creative solutions at your fingertips.
From 3.9% in March to 4.1% in April, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased by 0.2 percentage points, according to data released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
"With employment up by about 38,000 people and the number of unemployed up by 30,000, the unemployment rate went up to 4.1% and the participation rate went up to 66.7%," stated Bjorn Jarvis, head of labour statistics at ABS.
"The 30,000 people increase in unemployment reflected more people without jobs available and looking for work, and also more people than usual indicating that they had a job that they were waiting to start in.
"The increases in both employment and unemployment in April saw the participation rate up by 0.1 percentage point to 66.7 per cent in April. It has been relatively high, above 66.5 per cent, since March 2023.
"The employment-to-population ratio remained steady at 64.0 per cent in April, indicating that recent employment growth is broadly keeping pace with population growth. This suggests that the labour market remains tight, though less tight than late 2022 and early 2023," Mr Jarvis said.
Employment and hours worked
Seasonally adjusted monthly hours worked remained steady between March and April.
"The seasonal change in hours worked in April 2024 was similar to the normal pattern we usually see around the Easter holidays.
"In contrast to what we saw last year, when fewer people than usual took time off around the Easter holidays in April 2023, the proportion of people working reduced hours in April 2024 was more similar to what we saw before the COVID-19 pandemic," Mr Jarvis said.
Today's release also includes an article on seasonal adjustment, with a focus on understanding seasonality in the hours worked and employment.
Nothing is free like a free press. Give now to help sustain independent journalism in your community.
It's evident from recent events that there has never been a better moment to support local news. Donate now to help sustain independent reporting.
Underemployment and underutilisation
The seasonally adjusted underemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 6.6 per cent in April 2024. While the underemployment rate has risen by 0.4 percentage points since April 2023, it remained 2.1 percentage points lower than March 2020.
The underutilisation rate, which combines the unemployment and underemployment rates, rose 0.3 percentage points to 10.7 per cent. While this was 0.8 percentage points higher than April 2023, it was 3.3 percentage points lower than March 2020.
Underlying trend data
In April, the trend unemployment rate remained at 4.0 per cent.
In trend terms, employment grew by 31,000 people (0.2 per cent).
"The increase in trend employment in April is around what we have seen, on average, over the 20 years before the pandemic," Mr Jarvis said.
Hours worked rose by 0.4 per cent between March and April, in trend terms. The current trend data showed that hours worked had fallen during the second half of 2023 but now aligned more closely with employment growth since December 2023. It was 0.7 per cent above the previous peak in the trend series in June 2023.
The employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.0 per cent in April. This was still close to the historically high levels seen throughout 2023, and still 1.9 percentage points higher than March 2020.
The participation rate remained at 66.7 per cent. In rounded terms, this rate has been either 66.6 per cent or 66.7 per cent for the past 12 months, and well above the 65.6 per cent in March 2020.
"The employment-to-population ratio has been above 64.0 per cent, in trend terms, since June 2022. The trend participation rate has also been above 66.4 per cent in the same period. Both are well above their pre-pandemic levels," Mr Jarvis said.
The underemployment rate remained at 6.6 per cent and the underutilisation rate stayed at 10.6 per cent.
"The most recent trend data continues to point to a relatively tight labour market, consistent with what we have seen in Single Touch Payroll data and job vacancies data," Mr Jarvis said.
More information, including regional labour market data, will be available in the upcoming April 2024 issue of Labour Force, Australia, Detailed, on Thursday 23 May 2024.
Got a News Tip?
Contact our editor via Proton Mail encrypted, X Direct Message, LinkedIn, or email. You can securely message him on Signal by using his username, Miko Santos.
More on The Evening Post AU
Get Evening Post Wrap - for nighly bite size news around Australia and the world.
Podwires Daily - for providing news about audio trends and podcasts.
Podwires Asia - for reporting on podcasting and audio trends in South East Asia
There’s a Glitch - updated tech news and scam and fraud trends
Manpalikha - The world's and Asia's most inventive advertisements and news.
The Freeman Chronicle Podcast - features expert interviews on current political and social issues in Australia and worldwide.
That Podcast Exchange - This podcast is an insightful conversation with people at the top of their game and deconstructs them to find the tools, tactics, and tricks to help you achieve your dream goal as Podcast Manager.
The Evening Post AU readers receive journalism free of financial and political influence.
We set our own news agenda, which is always based on facts rather than billionaire ownership or political pressure. Despite the financial challenges that our industry faces, we have decided to keep our reporting open to the public because we believe that everyone has the right to know the truth about the events that shape their world.
Thanks to the support of our readers, we can continue to provide free reporting. If you can, please choose to support The Evening Post Australia.
It only takes a minute to help us investigate fearlessly and expose lies and wrongdoing to hold power accountable. Thanks!