Labour Account Australia

Latest release

The Australian Labour Account provides quarterly and annual time series for four quadrants: Jobs, People, Hours and Payments

Reference period
December 2023
Released
8/03/2024
  • Next Release 7/06/2024
    Labour Account Australia, March 2024
  • Next Release 6/09/2024
    Labour Account Australia, June 2024
  • View all releases

Key statistics

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023:

  • total jobs increased 0.2% to 16.0 million
  • filled jobs increased 0.4% to 15.6 million
  • secondary jobs increased 1.3% to 1.1 million
  • proportion of vacant jobs decreased to 2.4%
  • multiple job-holders increased 1.4% to 970,700
  • hours worked decreased 0.3% to 5.9 billion hours.
Key statistics - Seasonally adjusted
  Dec-23Quarterly change (%)Annual change (%)
Jobs    
 Total jobs16,019,3000.2%2.4%
 Filled jobs15,631,5000.4%2.8%
 Job vacancies387,900-5.6%-13.4%
 Main jobs14,529,8000.3%2.5%
 Secondary jobs1,101,7001.3%6.8%
 Proportion of vacant jobs2.4%nana
People    
 Employed people14,532,5000.5%2.5%
 Multiple job-holders970,7001.4%3.7%
 Multiple job-holding rate6.7%nana
Hours    
 Hours actually worked5,863.3 million-0.3%2.0%
Payments    
 Average income per employed person$23,629.200.9%4.2%
Key statistics - Trend (a)
  Dec-23Quarterly change (%)Annual change (%)
Jobs    
 Total jobs16,113,2000.7%2.9%
 Filled jobs15,719,1000.8%3.4%
 Job vacancies394,000-3.3%-14.3%
 Main jobs14,614,2000.8%3.2%
 Secondary jobs1,104,9000.8%6.5%
 Proportion of vacant jobs2.4%nana
People    
 Employed people14,532,4000.5%2.6%
 Multiple job-holders971,9000.2%3.9%
 Multiple job-holding rate6.7%nana
Hours    
 Hours actually worked5,880.7 million0.0%2.2%
  1. The ABS expects to reinstate trend estimates in the Payments quadrant in mid-2024. For more information, see Data impacts and changes.

Labour Force statistics estimation improvements

As part of ongoing improvements to the estimation method for Labour Force statistics, which are a key input into the Labour Account, the ABS will make some minor changes in how it accounts for some relatively small population groups within the Labour Force Survey sample.

The ABS will introduce the new method with the February 2024 Labour Force release (and quarterly population rebenchmarking revisions) on 21 March 2024. Further information on this estimation improvements can be found in Improvements to Labour Force estimation method. Revisions from this change will be reflected in corresponding time series revisions to the Labour Account in the next release, for March quarter 2024, on 7 June 2024.

Guide to labour statistics

To learn more about our different labour measures, their purpose and how to use them, see our Guide to labour statistics. It provides summary information on labour market topics including Industry employment data.

Data impacts and changes

Revisions this quarter

Data in the four quadrants of the Labour Account have been revised from the previously published estimates.

Revisions may be attributable to a range of factors including revisions to quarterly source data. These include:

  • revisions to Overseas Arrivals and Departures data
  • revisions to data from the quarterly Australian National Accounts.
Major rebenchmarking of Labour Force estimates

In addition, the ABS has revised the original Labour Force series from July 2016 to reflect the latest estimated resident population (ERP) based on the 2021 Census (final rebased ERP).  This is a regular 5-yearly rebasing process which follows each Census, and ensures the Labour Force estimates are benchmarked to the most recent population information. 

The usual resident civilian population in October 2023 was revised up by around 0.2% (around 37,200 people).

This resulted in minimal revisions to all Labour Account total measures in this release, including filled jobs and hours worked.

For further information on revisions to the Labour Force, refer to the November 2023 release of Labour Force, Australia. 

Further general information on revisions in the Labour Account can be found in Labour Statistics: Concepts, Sources and Methods.

Revisions to published estimates are shown in Table 22 in the Data downloads section.
 

Seasonal adjustment and trend estimates

ABS suspended the publication of Labour Account trend estimates in June quarter 2020, due to large changes in the labour market during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic (June quarter 2020 to June quarter 2022).

As suggested in A Guide to Interpreting Time Series, trend estimates are generally a better guide to the substantive movements in the series and are considered the best indicator of the underlying behaviour of the labour market. 

Given this, following extensive analysis of the time series, the ABS reinstated Labour Account trend estimates for the Jobs, People and Hours quadrants and reverted back to using the concurrent seasonal adjustment method across all series (rather than using forward factors) in September quarter 2023. 

For the Labour Account and National Accounts, the ABS is reinstating trend estimates in step with key contributing data sources. Across the Jobs, People, and Hours quadrants, key data sources including Labour Force and Job Vacancies have already reinstated trend estimates. Trend estimates will be reinstated in the Payments quadrant alongside Business Indicators. This is expected to occur in mid-2024.

The ABS has included the trend during the COVID-19 period in the spreadsheets in this release. However, given the larger than usual quarter-to-quarter changes between June quarter 2020 and June quarter 2022, the ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates during this period. 

The ABS will undertake another review of the Labour Account seasonal adjustment and trend estimates in the Annual Seasonal Reanalysis in 2024. As part of this process, there may be larger than usual revisions, particularly for the first two years of the pandemic.

Jobs

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023:

  • filled jobs increased by 0.4%, following a 0.9% rise in the September quarter 2023, and 2.8% through the year
  • the number of main jobs increased by 42,500 (0.3%)
  • the proportion of vacant jobs decreased to 2.4%
  • the number of public sector jobs increased by 1.3%, while the number of private sector jobs increased by 0.3%.

Total jobs

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023, the total number of jobs increased by 34,200 (0.2%). This consisted of a decrease of 22,800 job vacancies and an increase of 57,000 filled jobs.

Filled jobs

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023, the number of filled jobs increased by 57,000 to 15.6 million.

Filled jobs, by industry, December quarter 2023, seasonally adjusted
Filled jobs ('000)Quarterly change (%)Annual change (%)
Agriculture, forestry and fishing (A)461.1-0.5-0.2
Mining (B)221.01.08.8
Manufacturing (C)904.0-0.2-1.7
Electricity, gas, water and waste services (D)141.80.26.1
Construction (E)1,229.82.60.0
Wholesale trade (F)623.9-0.1-3.7
Retail trade (G)1,460.3-0.5-1.3
Accommodation and food services (H)1,118.2-7.6-2.9
Transport, postal and warehousing (I)753.50.65.2
Information media and telecommunications (J)209.3-8.3-1.1
Financial and insurance services (K)518.70.9-1.1
Rental, hiring and real estate services (L)320.6-3.83.0
Professional, scientific and technical services (M)1,271.14.42.7
Administrative and support services (N)1,038.93.72.5
Public administration and safety (O)839.01.34.2
Education and training (P)1,271.1-0.27.7
Health care and social assistance (Q)2,369.31.79.2
Arts and recreation services (R)297.50.920.8
Other services (S)582.21.73.7
Total all industries15,631.50.42.8

Main and secondary jobs

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023:

  • main jobs increased by 42,500 (0.3%)
  • secondary jobs increased by 14,500 (1.3%)
  • the proportion of secondary jobs to filled jobs remained at 7.0%.

The three industries with the highest number of secondary jobs were Health care and social assistance, Administrative and support services, and Education and training.

Secondary jobs can be held by people who have their main job in the same or a different industry. 

Statistical discrepancy - Filled jobs

The Labour Account compiles independent estimates of the number of filled jobs from both a household and business perspective. The difference between these two estimates is referred to as the "statistical discrepancy".  The household estimates of filled jobs are considered the best measure of labour market activity total economy level, while business sources are considered more reliable estimating the distribution of jobs across industries. As a result, the Labour Account filled jobs estimates are constrained (equivalent) to the household side.

The discrepancy between the two sources is reduced to zero through the balancing processes of the Labour Account, producing a single harmonised or "balanced" number of filled jobs. The balanced estimate of filled jobs incorporates the advantage of the industry distribution derived from business side data, whilst constraining to a total economy estimate sourced from household side data. In original terms the discrepancy between household sources and business sources was 218,100 jobs in the December quarter 2023, or 1.4% of the household estimate.

While the business sources have been showing stronger jobs growth over the COVID period, this hasn't impacted on overall Labour Accounts aggregates given the Labour Account jobs estimates are constrained to the household side.

Balancing decisions for Rental, hiring and real estate services and Other services were mostly based on household survey sources. All other industries were mostly based on business survey sources.

People

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023:

  • the total number of employed people increased by 0.5% to 14.5 million
  • the number of multiple job-holders increased by 1.4%
  • unemployed people increased by 68,600 people to 578,000.

The three industries with the highest number of employed people in the December quarter 2023 were Health care and social assistance, Retail trade, and Professional, scientific and technical services.

Hours

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023, the total number of hours actually worked decreased by 15.9 million hours (0.3%) to 5.9 billion hours.

The three industries with the highest number of hours actually worked in the December quarter 2023 were Health care and social assistance, Construction, and Professional, scientific and technical services.

Payments

The Labour Account Payments quadrant presents the costs incurred by enterprises in employing labour, and the income received by people from its provision. Total income consists of compensation of employees and labour income from self-employment. The addition of other related costs to employers to total income will derive total labour costs.

In seasonally adjusted terms for the December quarter 2023:

  • total labour income increased by $4,844 million (1.4%) to $343,390 million
  • the average labour income per employed person increased by 0.9% to $23,629
  • total compensation of employees increased by 1.7% to $315,575 million
  • labour income from self-employment decreased by 1.2% to $27,815 million
  • total labour costs increased by $5,045 million (1.4%) to $364,575 million. 

The three industries with the highest total labour income in the December quarter 2023 were Health care and social assistance, Professional, scientific and technical services, and Construction.

Data downloads

Time series spreadsheets

Quarterly estimates for Jobs, People, Hours and Payments by Industry Division and Total All Industries.

Data files

Data Explorer datasets

Quarterly original estimates for Jobs, People, Hours and Payments by Industry Subdivision, Division and Total All Industries.

Labour Account balanced - Balanced quarterly original estimates for Jobs, People, Hours and Payments by Industry Subdivision, Division and Total All Industries.

For information on Data Explorer and how it works, see the Data explorer user guide.

Seasonal adjustment for leap years

The extra leap year day in 2024 is unlikely to impact seasonally adjusted statistics released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) for the month of February 2024 and the March quarter 2024.  This is because the effect of an additional leap year day is analysed and accounted for as part of the seasonal adjustment process, which includes the impact of trading days. The impact of the extra leap year day will be evident in the original (non-seasonally adjusted) series. For more information please refer to this note.

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 6150.0.55.003.

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