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Employment Hits a Record High

Employment Hits a Record High image

The ABS's labour force figures released today show that seasonally adjusted employment increased by 64,800 (or 0.5 per cent) in December, to stand at a record high of 13,242,000. Employment is now 246,600 (or 1.9 per cent) above the level recorded in March 2020 (when Australia recorded its 100th case of COVID-19).

  • Full-time employment increased by 41,500 (or 0.5 per cent) over the month, while part-time employment rose by 23,300 (or 0.6 per cent).
  • The rise in employment at the national level was driven, primarily, by increases in New South Wales (up by 32,300 or 0.8 per cent) and Victoria (up by 24,700 or 0.7 per cent).

Against the stronger backdrop, the level of unemployment fell by 62,200 (or 9.8 per cent) over the month, to 574,400 in December. The unemployment rate also declined, from 4.6 per cent in November to 4.2 per cent in December. This is the lowest unemployment rate recorded since August 2008 and well below the 5.3 per cent recorded in March 2020.

Encouragingly, employment for youth increased by 37,800 (or 2.0 per cent) in December, accounting for more than half of the rise in overall employment.

The Government continues to back Australia's small business-led recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic by extending the SME Recover Loan Scheme to 30 June 2022. The extension of the scheme will continue to provide unprecedented support for SMEs. It will help even more businesses to gain access to the funding they need to adapt, innovate and bounce back from the impact of the pandemic.

Access the full media release here.

Date posted Jan 27, 2022

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