Earn
50,000 Aussies back at work: ABS
Australia has added 50,000 new jobs for the month of December, with the unemployment rate falling from 6.8 per cent in November to 6.6 per cent, official stats show.
50,000 Aussies back at work: ABS
Australia has added 50,000 new jobs for the month of December, with the unemployment rate falling from 6.8 per cent in November to 6.6 per cent, official stats show.
Employment data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that nearly 13 million people are now back at work as the economy continues to recover from the COVID-19 downturn.
Bjorn Jarvis, head of labour statistics at the ABS, said this latest data showed that the broad recovery in the labour market had continued through to the end of the year.
“Employment finished the year 0.7 per cent below the March level, having fallen 6.7 per cent, or 872,000 people, between March and May.”
The participation rate, which represents the labour force as a proportion of the civilian population aged 15 years and over, rose by a further 0.1 percentage points to a new high of 66.2 per cent.
“The rise in the participation rate reflects a net increase of around 20,000 people in the labour force in December. There were 108,000 more people in the labour force than in March – 196,000 more unemployed people and 88,000 fewer employed people,” Mr Jarvis said.
The youth unemployment rate dropped 1.7 percentage points to 13.9 per cent in December, and the youth participation rate fell 1.1 percentage points to 68.6 per cent.
“Although employment has recovered 90 per cent of the fall from March to May, the recovery in part-time employment has outpaced full-time employment. While part-time employment was higher than March, full-time employment was 1.3 per cent below March,” Mr Jarvis explains.
“The recovery in hours worked has been slower than the recovery in employment.”
Businesses fail to attract talent
Amid record-high unemployment rates as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Randstad Sourceright’s 2021 Talent Trends Report showed that scarcity remains a major challenge for businesses, with 40 per cent of human capital leaders reporting that talent scarcity has negatively impacted their organisation – the highest total in the past five years.
“2020 was certainly a tumultuous year, resulting in a global economic decline that led to millions of individuals losing their jobs. Yet, despite this large talent pool of available workers, employers continue to face a growing skills gap – especially for digital skills – that has been exacerbated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mike Smith, global CEO of Randstad Sourceright.
According to the report, 40 per cent of HR leaders are experiencing a talent scarcity in IT, while 28 per cent say that they can’t find enough qualified candidates in HR roles. Nearly one in five needs more finance and accounting specialists.
About the author
About the author
Salary
1 in 4 Aussies is now looking to change their job
With the economy beginning its recovery from the COVID-19 downturn, Australian workers are now actively seeking new employment, a survey has revealed. ...Read more
Salary
Aussie workers exceed expectations – but can it last?
Australian workers have adapted to changing working conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the majority of bosses saying workers exceeded expectations. ...Read more
Salary
Do business better: The next normal needs older workers
The fallout from the global pandemic is reshaping the way in which people of all ages work. More people are working from home than ever before and many companies have had to adapt their business model...Read more
Salary
Budget must focus on imbalances, says ACTU
Unions are warning the Morrison government ahead of the budget, noting that Australia will judge them based on several key factors, including how they protect the working people and build greater re...Read more
Salary
Is it time to adopt a 4-day working week?
With Spain becoming one of the first countries to trial a four-day work week, calls have increased for Australia to trial similar model, which would see full-timers week reduced to 32 hours at the sa...Read more
Salary
How to survive and thrive in the gig economy
What do Uber drivers, Upworkers and Taskrabbiters have in common? They’re part of what’s often referred to as the “gig economy”, comprising millions of Aussie workers. ...Read more
Salary
Unions call for minimum wage increase as Australians get back to work
The unions are calling for the minimum wage to be increased to help aid the economic recovery from the COVID-19 downturn, as the latest job figures show Australians are getting back to work. ...Read more
Salary
Labour market’s ‘miraculous’ recovery
The economic recovery is continuing, with Australia’s unemployment rate continuing to fall, official figures show. ...Read more
Has the property market reached its peak; Biden’s climate summit and our sharemarket, and the upcoming budget
Listen now
Is the market overheating; should ETFs take your fancy, and what’s happening to the low and middle income tax offset?
Listen now
Home values up 30% (or are they); NFTs taking the world by storm, and why Keating thinks Aussies will be ‘poor’ in retirement
Listen now
Raging floods, the tech stock bubble and the ongoing SG debate
Listen now
Salary
1 in 4 Aussies is now looking to change their job
With the economy beginning its recovery from the COVID-19 downturn, Australian workers are now actively seeking new employment, a survey has revealed. ...Read more
Salary
Aussie workers exceed expectations – but can it last?
Australian workers have adapted to changing working conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the majority of bosses saying workers exceeded expectations. ...Read more
Salary
Do business better: The next normal needs older workers
The fallout from the global pandemic is reshaping the way in which people of all ages work. More people are working from home than ever before and many companies have had to adapt their business model...Read more
Salary
Budget must focus on imbalances, says ACTU
Unions are warning the Morrison government ahead of the budget, noting that Australia will judge them based on several key factors, including how they protect the working people and build greater re...Read more
Salary
Is it time to adopt a 4-day working week?
With Spain becoming one of the first countries to trial a four-day work week, calls have increased for Australia to trial similar model, which would see full-timers week reduced to 32 hours at the sa...Read more
Salary
How to survive and thrive in the gig economy
What do Uber drivers, Upworkers and Taskrabbiters have in common? They’re part of what’s often referred to as the “gig economy”, comprising millions of Aussie workers. ...Read more
Salary
Unions call for minimum wage increase as Australians get back to work
The unions are calling for the minimum wage to be increased to help aid the economic recovery from the COVID-19 downturn, as the latest job figures show Australians are getting back to work. ...Read more
Salary
Labour market’s ‘miraculous’ recovery
The economic recovery is continuing, with Australia’s unemployment rate continuing to fall, official figures show. ...Read more
More articles
Website Notifications
Get notifications in real-time for staying up to date with content that matters to you.
