The ABS data for April 2015 employment was released today. Australia’s estimated seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April 2015 increased 0.1 percentage points to 6.2 per cent, compared with 6.1 per cent for March 2015. In trend terms, the unemployment rate decreased by less than 0.1 percentage points to 6.1 per cent. The seasonally adjusted labour force participation rate remained steady at 64.8 per cent in April 2015.
The ABS reported the number of people employed decreased by 2,900 to 11,724,600 in April 2015 (seasonally adjusted). The decrease in employment was driven by decreases in full-time employment for males (down 47,900) and part-time employment for females (down 10,700). These were offset by increases in male part-time employment (up 29,700) and female full-time employment (up 26,000).
The ABS seasonally adjusted aggregate monthly hours worked series increased in April 2015, up 17.8 million hours (1.1 per cent) to 1,651.9 million hours. The seasonally adjusted number of people unemployed increased by 7,000 to 769,500 in April 2015. This was driven by people who looked for part-time work only, which increased by 9,800 to 228,000.
