For the final two months, the Australian labour market has gone backwards. The deterioration appears to have stabilised in October. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) launched the most recent labour power knowledge at the moment (November 13, 2025) – Labour Drive, Australia – for October 2025, which reveals a slight drop in official unemployment and underemployment and a steady employment to inhabitants ratio – marking time. The most effective signal this month is that full-time employment progress was comparatively sturdy. Nonetheless, there are actually 10 per cent of accessible labour not being utilized in one kind or one other, so it’s ludicrous to speak about Australia being near full employment. There may be substantial scope for extra job creation given the slack that’s current.
The abstract seasonally-adjusted statistics for October 2025 are:
- Employment rose 42,200 (0.3 per cent).
- Full-time employment rose 55 thousand (0.5 per cent).
- Half-time employment fell 13 thousand (-0.3 per cent).
- Unemployment fell 17,000 (-2.5 per cent) to 665,400.
- The unemployment fee fell 0.1 level to 4.3 per cent.
- The participation fee was steady at 67 per cent.
- The Employment-population ratio was regular at 64 per cent.
- Month-to-month hours labored rose 11 million (0.5 per cent).
- Underemployment fell 0.2 factors to five.7 per cent (falling 28.8 thousand to 877.1 thousand).
- The Broad Labour Underutilisation fee (the sum of unemployment and underemployment) fell 0.3 factors to 10.1 per cent.
- Total, there are 11542.5 thousand folks both unemployed or underemployed.
The ABS press launch – Unemployment fee falls to 4.3% – famous that:
The seasonally adjusted unemployment fee fell to 4.3 per cent in October …
… This month extra unemployed folks moved into employment in comparison with a typical October …
The autumn in part-time employment was pushed by the feminine workforce, with feminine part-time employment falling by 21,000 folks …
Abstract
1. After just a few months of deteriorating outcomes, the info for October pointed to a stabilising state of affairs and it is perhaps that the rise in unemployment during the last a number of months has ended for now.
2. Two years in the past, the official unemployment fee was 3.5 per cent. Now it’s 4.3 per cent.
3. The decline in each official unemployment and underemployment, as full-time employment progress dominated was an excellent end result.
Employment progress improves in October
Employment progress outpaced the expansion within the underlying working age inhabitants this month.
- Employment rose 42,200 (0.3 per cent).
- Full-time employment rose 55 thousand (0.5 per cent).
- Half-time employment fell 13 thousand (-0.3 per cent).
The next graph exhibits the expansion in whole, full-time, and part-time employment for the final 24 months.
The next desk exhibits the shifts during the last 6 months which helps to see the underlying development.
The Employment-to-Inhabitants ratio gives a measure of the state of the labour market that’s unbiased of the availability shifts within the labour market (pushed by the shifts within the participation fee).
The underlying working age inhabitants grows steadily whereas the labour power shifts with each underlying inhabitants progress and the participation swings.
The next graph exhibits the Employment-Inhabitants ratio was regular at 64 (for the final three months).
The following graphs present the typical month-to-month change in whole employment (first graph) and full- and part-time employment (second graph).
For whole employment the month-to-month common modifications had been:
- 2022 – 44.8 thousand
- 2023 – 30.8 thousand
- 2024 – 32.6 thousand
- 2025 thus far – 16 thousand (slight rise on October)
Month-to-month hours labored rose 10.7 million (0.54 per cent) in October 2025
The next graph exhibits the expansion in month-to-month hours labored for the final 24 months, with the straight line being a easy linear regression to point development.
Unemployment fell 17 thousand to 665,400 in October
The official unemployment fee fell 0.1 level to 4.3 per cent.
With participation steady, employment progress outpaced the underlying progress within the working age inhabitants – an excellent signal.
The next graph exhibits the evolution of the official unemployment fee since 1980.
Broad labour underutilisation – fell 0.3 factors in October
- Underemployment fell 0.2 factors to five.7 per cent (falling 28.8 thousand to 877.1 thousand).
- The Broad Labour Underutilisation fee (the sum of unemployment and underemployment) fell 0.3 factors to 10.1 per cent.
- Total, there are 11542.5 thousand folks both unemployed or underemployed.
The next graph exhibits the evolution of underemployment and the Broad labour underutilisation fee since 1980.
Teenage labour market – slight enchancment
- Complete teenage (15-19) employment rose 8.2 thousand (1 per cent) in October 2025.
- Full-time employment rose 12.3 thousand (6.5 per cent).
- Half-time employment fell 4.1 thousand (0.6 per cent).
The next desk summarises the shifts within the teenage labour marketplace for the month and during the last 12 months.
To place these modifications right into a scale perspective (that’s, relative to dimension of the teenage labour power) the next graph exhibits the shifts within the Employment-Inhabitants ratio for youngsters.
The Teenage Employment-Inhabitants ratios and their month-to-month modifications in October 2025 had been:
- Males: 49.1 per cent – up 1.3 factors.
- Females: 52.3 per cent – dowm 0.5 factors.
- Complete: 50.7 per cent – up 0.4 factors.
Conclusion
My normal warning to take care in decoding month-to-month labour power modifications – they’ll fluctuate for a lot of causes and it’s imprudent to leap to conclusions on the again of a single month’s knowledge.
- This month’s knowledge suggests the decline during the last a number of months has ended and the labour market has stabilised.
- Essentially the most constructive signal was the comparatively sturdy progress in full-time employment, partly offset by a decline in part-time work.
- This allowed each the unemployment fee and the underemployment fee to fall – an excellent end result.
- It stays a incontrovertible fact that with 10.1 per cent of accessible labour not getting used it’s ludicrous to speak about Australia being near full employment. There may be substantial scope for extra job creation given the slack that’s current.
That’s sufficient for at the moment!
(c) Copyright 2025 William Mitchell. All Rights Reserved.