Cerberus1 Posted January 18, 2018 Share Posted January 18, 2018 Australia's jobs boom has extended to its 15th consecutive month growth, the longest unbroken period of growth recorded by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. In seasonally adjusted terms, 35,000 new jobs were added in December, well ahead of the median economist forecast of 15,000. In the past 12 months, around 400,000 new jobs have been added. However, unemployment in December also ticked up a notch to 5.5 per cent as more people looked for work, pushing the participation rate up to a seven-year high of 65.7 per cent. The growth was split between 15,100 full-time positions and 19,500 part-time jobs in December, although over the year 300,000 full-time jobs have been created compared to 100,000 extra part-time positions. Job prospects for women were brighter over the year as well, with the number of women in work rising by 240,000 and the number of males in work up by only 160,000. However, with part-time work growth outpacing full-time in December, average hours worked fell over the month, as did hours worked per employee. Capital Economics analyst Paul Dales said, while there was some "softness" in the figures, the overall picture is bright, with the unemployment rate easing back from the 5.7 per cent recorded at the start of 2017. "Looking ahead, other indicators suggest further progress will be made this year, albeit jobs growth will probably come off the boil a bit," Mr Dales said. "The labour market will drive a modest rebound in real income growth this year, but more needs to be achieved before wage growth rises meaningfully." Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-01-18/unemployment-december-2017/9338664 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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