Australia’s unemployment rate increased by 0.1% to 5.4% in December.
There was a small fall in full-time employment, offset by increased part-time employment. The participation rate was steady at 65.1%.
Employment Participation Minister Kate Ellis and Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey both commented on the figures.
- Listen to Kate Ellis comment on the figures (14m)
- Listen to Shadow Treasurer Joe Hockey (7m)
Text of media release from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Australia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased 0.1 percentage points to 5.4 per cent in December, as announced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.
The ABS reported the number of people employed decreased by 5,500 to 11,538,900 in December. The decrease in employment was driven by decreased full-time employment, down 13,800 people to 8,112,500 and was offset by increased part-time employment, up 8,300 people to 3,426,400. The increase in part-time employment was driven by an increase in male part-time employment.
The number of people unemployed increased by 16,600 people to 656,400 in December, the ABS reported.
The ABS monthly seasonally adjusted aggregate hours worked series showed a decrease in December, down 1.1 million hours to 1,623.5 million hours.
The ABS reported that the seasonally adjusted labour force participation rate remained steady at 65.1 per cent in December.
