- The unemployment rate in Australia dropped by 0.1 % to 3.6 percent in May.

- Employment increased by approximately 76,000 people, and the number of unemployed individuals decreased by 17,000.

- The employment growth in May followed a slight decrease in April, because of the Easter holiday period.

- The average monthly employment increase over the past two months was around 36,000 people, like the average over the past year.

- The number of employed individuals in Australia reached a record high of 14 million, surpassing pre-pandemic levels.

- The employment-to-population ratio also reached a record high of 64.5 %, indicating a higher share of the population being employed.

- The participation rate increased by 0.1% to 66.9%, with women's employment and participation rates reaching record highs.

- Monthly hours worked decreased by 1.8 %, following a previous increase in April during the Easter period.

Despite a decrease in hours worked in the latest month, the overall strength of hours worked since late 2022, relative to employment growth, indicates that the demand for labor in a tight market is being met to some extent by people working more hours. The proportion of employed individuals working fewer hours than usual was only slightly higher than the pre-pandemic average in May, standing at 24.3 % compared to the pre-pandemic average of 22.4 %.

Although there was a slight increase in the number of people working fewer hours due to illness (4.2 %compared to the May pre-pandemic average of 3.5%), this figure was significantly lower than the corresponding period in May 2022 (5.8%) during the Omicron period.

UNDEREMPLOYMENT AND UNDERUTILIZATION

The underemployment rate rose 0.3 % to 6.4 %, following a 0.1 % fall in April.

"The underemployment rate is still low in historic terms, around 2.3 % lower than before the pandemic," Mr. Jarvis said.

The underutilization rate, which combines the unemployment and underemployment rates, rose 0.2 % to 10.0 %, which is 3.9 % lower than in March 2020.

UNDERLYING TREND DATA

The latest data reveals that the monthly percentage increase in trend employment surpassed the average for the 20 years prior to the pandemic. In May 2023, the trend of employment increased by 0.3 %, compared to the average monthly increase of 0.2 % during the pre-pandemic period.

According to Mr. Jarvis, the trend data consistently demonstrates the robustness of both employment and hours worked in comparison to their historical averages. The growth in hours worked remains notably strong. In May 2023, there was a trend increase of approximately 0.4 % in hours worked, which is double the longer-term average of 0.2 %. Additionally, this growth in hours worked surpassed the 0.3 % increase in employment during the same period.

The unemployment rate remained at 3.5 % for the tenth consecutive month, after earlier data was revised down slightly.

The underemployment rate rose slightly to 6.3 %.

The participation rate remained steady at 66.8 % and the employment to population ratio remained at 64.4 %.

Border line:  strong growth in hours worked, the elevated employment-to-population ratio and participation rate, along with the low unemployment and underemployment rates – they all point to a continuing tight labour market.

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