Steady as she goes: No change to jobless rate, but 64,000 jobs added
The national jobless rate has stayed at 3.4 per cent, with 64,000 jobs added to the economy. A 66.8 per cent participation rate was recorded for the month of November.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics published its latest labour force figures on Thursday, revealing the latest fluctuations in Australia’s ultra-competitive jobs market.
“With increases in both employment (up 64,000 people) and unemployment (up 7000 people), the unemployment rate remained steady at 3.4 per cent, while the participation rate increased to 66.8 per cent,” Bjorn Jarvis, head of labour statistics at the bureau, said.
Strong demand for labour throughout the pandemic recovery has kept the jobless rate in the mid-threes since June.
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In October 32,200 jobs were added to the economy, driving the jobless rate back to 3.4 per cent from 3.5 per cent in September.
Although job vacancies and ads have come off their elevated peaks, another low jobless read was expected given the enduring heat in the jobs market.
But a weakening in the jobless rate is expected as economic conditions worsen.
The jobs market is already showing signs of reaching capacity, with advertisement numbers falling in November for the sixth month in a row.
