Australia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate edged up to 4.1% in January from 4.0% in December as more people entered the workforce, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The rise in jobseekers accompanied a strong increase in employment, with 44,000 jobs added, driven by full-time positions, while part-time employment declined.
The participation rate, which measures the share of people working or seeking work, climbed to a record 67.3%, while the number of unemployed people increased by 23,400 over the month.
Despite the uptick in joblessness, the labour market remained resilient, with employment growth surpassing economist forecasts.
The employment-to-population ratio also hit a new high of 64.6% in January, reflecting the growing number of people entering the labour market.
ABS head of labour statistics Bjorn Jarvis noted that the increase in both employment and unemployment was largely due to more women joining the workforce.
"Most of the rise in both employment and unemployment in January reflected rises for women, with female employment rising by 44,000 and unemployment by 24,000. In contrast, male employment and unemployment both changed by less than 1,000 people.” Jarvis said.
The start of the year also saw a seasonal effect, with many individuals beginning or resuming work after the summer period.
"As in the past three Januarys, in January 2025 we again saw more people than usual who had a job but were waiting to start or return to work," Jarvis added.
Meanwhile, average weekly earnings growth for full-time workers increased 4.6% on an annualised basis to $1,975.80 in November 2024.
"Average weekly earnings growth over the six months to November 2024 was 2.7%, which was higher than the 1.8% growth in the six months to May 2024," Jarvis stated. “The growth in the second half of 2024 was only slightly lower than the 2.8% seen in the second half of 2023.”
