Headline estimates of employment, unemployment, underemployment, participation and hours worked from the monthly Labour Force Survey
In trend terms, in February 2023:
In seasonally adjusted terms, in February 2023:
| Jan-2023 | Feb-2023 | Monthly change | Monthly change (%) | Yearly change | Yearly change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed people | 13,811,600 | 13,831,400 | 19,800 | 0.1% | 419,900 | 3.1% |
| Unemployed people | 504,900 | 505,500 | 600 | 0.1% | -51,700 | -9.3% |
| Unemployment rate | 3.5% | 3.5% | 0.0 pts | na | -0.5 pts | na |
| Underemployment rate | 6.0% | 5.9% | 0.0 pts | na | -0.5 pts | na |
| Participation rate | 66.7% | 66.6% | 0.0 pts | na | 0.2 pts | na |
| Monthly hours worked in all jobs | 1,896 million | 1,901 million | 5 million | 0.2% | 72 million | 3.9% |
| Jan-2023 | Feb-2023 | Monthly change | Monthly change (%) | Yearly change | Yearly change (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed people | 13,761,700 | 13,826,200 | 64,600 | 0.5% | 401,800 | 3.0% |
| Unemployed people | 524,000 | 507,500 | -16,500 | -3.2% | -51,600 | -9.2% |
| Unemployment rate | 3.7% | 3.5% | -0.1 pts | na | -0.5 pts | na |
| Underemployment rate | 6.2% | 5.8% | -0.3 pts | na | -0.7 pts | na |
| Participation rate | 66.5% | 66.6% | 0.1 pts | na | 0.2 pts | na |
| Monthly hours worked in all jobs | 1,845 million | 1,917 million | 72 million | 3.9% | 93 million | 5.1% |
Estimates of changes throughout this release are calculated using un-rounded level estimates and may be different from, but are more accurate than, movements obtained from the rounded level estimates.
The ABS has again published Insights into hours worked, February 2023 (along with data cubes EM2a and EM2b, which are usually published in the detailed release), along with Historical charts from 1966 to February 2023.
The ABS has revised the original Labour Force series from July 2021 to reflect the latest available preliminary and final estimates of the Estimated Resident Population. This quarterly process ensures that the Labour Force series promptly reflect any change in population trends and minimises the size of revisions that can occur when the series are rebenchmarked following each Census of Population and Housing.
In response to COVID-19 related changes in travel, the ABS has been revising preliminary Net Overseas Migration estimates more frequently. Net Overseas Migration estimates are a component of population estimates, from which Labour Force benchmarks are produced. These revisions have been incorporated into the quarterly rebenchmarking revisions. For more information, please refer to 'Net Overseas Migration revisions in Labour Force benchmarks during COVID-19'.
The usual resident civilian population in December 2022 was revised up by around 0.15% (around 32,000 people).
Revisions to original series also result in revisions to seasonally adjusted series.
The ABS will be undertaking an ‘Annual Series Review’ of Labour Force series, ahead of the release of April 2023 data (on 18 May 2023). The outcome of this process will be summarised in a future release.
The February Labour Force Survey was run in respect of the two weeks from Sunday 29 January to Saturday 11 February, and collected over the period from Sunday 5 February to Saturday 25 February.
The ABS would like to thank Australians for their continued support in responding to our surveys, given how critically important this information is.
| Publication | Start of Reference Week | End of Reference Week | Start of Enumeration | End of Enumeration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan-23 | 1st January 2023 | 14th January 2023 | 8th January 2023 | 28th January 2023 |
| Feb-23 | 29th January 2023 | 11th February 2023 | 5th February 2023 | 25th February 2023 |
| Mar-23 | 26th February 2023 | 11th March 2023 | 5th March 2023 | 25th March 2023 |
| Apr-23 | 2nd April 2023 | 15th April 2023 | 9th April 2023 | 29th April 2023 |
| May-23 | 30th April 2023 | 13th May 2023 | 7th May 2023 | 27th May 2023 |
| Jun-23 | 4th June 2023 | 17th June 2023 | 11th June 2023 | 1st July 2023 |
In trend terms, in February 2023:
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. Information on trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
In trend terms, in February 2023, employment increased by 19,800 people (0.1%) to 13,831,400 people.
Flows into and out of employment are extensive and are based on the net matched sample of original employment growth between two consecutive months (around 80% of the sample). The (net) sum of the inflows and outflows does not necessarily equal the 'net' employment growth.
For February 2023, the net change in the number of employed people is the result of around 756,000 people entering employment (i.e. they were not employed in January but were employed in February), while around 419,000 people left employment (i.e. they were employed in January but not employed in February). This contrasts with January 2023, where around 396,000 people entered employment and around 796,000 people left employment.
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. Information on trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
In trend terms, in February 2023:
In trend terms, in February 2023, the employment-to-population ratio remained at 64.3%.
The employment-to-population ratio provides a measure of employment relative to the size of the population.
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. Information on trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
In trend terms, in February 2023, monthly hours worked in all jobs increased by 4.7 million hours (0.2%) to 1,901 million hours.
See the article Insights into hours worked for more.
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. Information on trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
In trend terms, in February 2023, the participation rate:
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. Information on trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
In trend terms, in February 2023:
Large month-to-month changes occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in multiple trend breaks. The ABS recommends caution when using trend estimates published in spreadsheets in this release for this period. A list of trend breaks can be found in Labour Force, Australia methodology, February 2023.
| New South Wales | Victoria | Queensland | South Australia | Western Australia | Tasmania | Northern Territory | Australian Capital Territory | Australia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed people | 4,339,500 | 3,555,100 | 2,788,100 | 933,300 | 1,518,100 | 288,100 | 141,200 | 264,500 | 13,831,400 |
| Employed people - monthly change | 0.1% | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.7% | 0.5% | 0.1% |
| Employment to population ratio | 64.3% | 64.4% | 63.6% | 61.3% | 66.4% | 60.0% | 72.5% | 70.7% | 64.3% |
| Employment to population ratio - monthly change | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.4 pts | 0.2 pts | 0.0 pts |
| Unemployment rate | 3.1% | 3.8% | 3.7% | 4.0% | 3.8% | 3.7% | 3.9% | 3.0% | 3.5% |
| Unemployment rate - monthly change | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts |
| Underemployment rate | 5.8% | 5.7% | 6.4% | 6.9% | 5.6% | 7.6% | 4.7% | 5.7% | 5.9% |
| Underemployment rate - monthly change | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.2 pts | 0.3 pts | 0.0 pts |
| Participation rate | 66.4% | 66.9% | 66.1% | 63.8% | 69.0% | 62.3% | 75.4% | 72.8% | 66.6% |
| Participation rate - monthly change | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.1 pts | 0.4 pts | 0.2 pts | 0.0 pts |
| New South Wales | Victoria | Queensland | South Australia | Western Australia | Tasmania | Northern Territory | Australian Capital Territory | Australia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed people | 4,332,300 | 3,571,500 | 2,777,900 | 936,000 | 1,520,300 | 286,400 | 141,600 | 266,000 | 13,826,200 |
| Employed people - monthly change | 0.4% | 1.8% | -0.8% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.2% | 1.2% | 2.0% | 0.5% |
| Employment to population ratio | 64.2% | 64.7% | 63.4% | 61.4% | 66.5% | 59.6% | 72.6% | 71.1% | 64.3% |
| Employment to population ratio - monthly change | 0.1 pts | 1.0 pts | -0.7 pts | 0.2 pts | 0.1 pts | 0.1 pts | 0.8 pts | 1.3 pts | 0.2 pts |
| Unemployment rate | 3.2% | 3.7% | 3.8% | 3.8% | 3.9% | 3.6% | 4.6% | 2.9% | 3.5% |
| Unemployment rate - monthly change | 0.0 pts | -0.3 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.2 pts | 0.2 pts | -0.5 pts | 0.6 pts | -0.5 pts | -0.1 pts |
| Underemployment rate | 5.9% | 5.4% | 6.4% | 6.9% | 5.6% | 7.5% | 4.1% | 6.0% | 5.8% |
| Underemployment rate - monthly change | 0.0 pts | -0.9 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.0 pts | -0.3 pts | -1.5 pts | -0.9 pts | 0.8 pts | -0.3 pts |
| Participation rate | 66.3% | 67.2% | 65.8% | 63.8% | 69.2% | 61.8% | 76.0% | 73.2% | 66.6% |
| Participation rate - monthly change | 0.1 pts | 0.8 pts | -0.7 pts | 0.0 pts | 0.3 pts | -0.3 pts | 1.3 pts | 1.0 pts | 0.1 pts |
The Labour Force Survey sample can be thought of as comprising eight sub-samples (rotation groups), with each sub-sample remaining in the survey for eight months, and one group "rotating out" each month and being replaced by a new group "rotating in". As seven-eighths of the sample are common from one month to the next, changes in the estimates reflect real changes in the labour market, rather than changes in the sample. The replacement sample is generally selected from the same geographic areas as the outgoing one, as part of a representative sampling approach.
The sample comprises three components:
The matched common sample describes the change observed for the same respondents in the current and previous month, while the other two components reflect differences between the aggregate labour force status of different groups of people.
While the rotation groups are designed to be representative of the population, the outgoing and incoming rotation groups will almost always have somewhat different characteristics, as they reflect different households and people. The design of the survey, including the weighting and estimation processes, ensures that these differences are generally relatively minor and do not affect the representativeness of the survey and its estimates. Monthly estimates are designed to be representative, regardless of the relative contribution of the three components of the sample.
The contributions of the three sample components to the original estimates of employed, unemployed and not in the labour force are in the Contribution from sample components to estimates spreadsheet.
| January outgoing rotation group | February incoming rotation group | February outgoing rotation group | February estimate (Original) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment to population ratio | 63.2% | 64.6% | 64.9% | 64.6% |
| Full-time employment to population ratio | 44.4% | 45.2% | 45.6% | 45.5% |
| Unemployment rate | 3.4% | 4.2% | 3.8% | 3.9% |
| Participation rate | 65.5% | 67.4% | 67.4% | 67.2% |
In addition to analysis across the entire sample, the ABS also undertakes similar analysis for the responding sample in each state and territory each month, and highlights where there is a notable change for users to be aware of. For example, in February 2023, the incoming rotation group in Victoria had a higher employment to population ratio and participation rate than the group it replaced. As with any notable month-to-month movement of this nature in state and territory estimates, the ABS recommends exercising a degree of caution in interpreting short-term changes.
As for its reporting for the entire sample, where the ABS has not highlighted a notable incoming rotation group effect, any larger changes should therefore be considered to reflect a broader change across the sample.
The gross flows and rotation group data are in original terms only, and are included to provide additional information on the month-to-month movements. They have a considerable level of inherent sampling variability, which is specifically adjusted for in the trend and seasonally adjusted series. The trend data provides the best measure of the underlying behaviour of the labour market and is the focus of the commentary in this publication.
Labour Force Survey results are released in three stages.
See the Survey output section of Labour Force, Australia methodology for more information.
Caution: Data in the Data Explorer is currently released after the 11:30am release on the ABS website. Please check the time period when using Data Explorer.
For information on Data Explorer and how it works, see the Data Explorer user guide.
Labour Force status by Sex, State and Territory - Number of people employed, unemployed and not in the labour force, monthly, February 1978 and onwards.
Labour Force hours worked data will also be released in Data Explorer in the future.
Historical charts from August 1966 to January 2023 (January 2023)
Historical charts from August 1966 to December 2022 (December 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to November 2022 (November 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to October 2022 (October 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to September 2022 (September 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to August 2022 (August 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to July 2022 (July 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to June 2022 (June 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to May 2022 (May 2022)
Historical charts from August 1966 to April 2022 (April 2022)
Historical charts from 1966 (March 2022)
Understanding full-time and part-time work (January 2021)
Understanding differences between Labour Force employment statistics and Weekly Payroll Jobs (April 2020)
Classifying people during the COVID-19 period (March 2020)
Labour Force Explained (September 2017)
Understanding the Australian labour force using ABS statistics (December 2013)
Understanding full-time / part-time status in the Labour Force Survey (September 2013)
Employment level estimates versus employment to population ratio explained (January 2012)
Charts on casual employment, occupation, industry and job mobility (November 2022)
Charts on casual employment, occupation, industry and job mobility (August 2022)
Charts on casual employment, occupation and industry (May 2022)
Insights into job mobility from quarterly Labour Force Statistics (February 2022)
Charts on casual employment, occupation and industry (February 2022)
Insights into job mobility from quarterly Labour Force statistics (December 2021)
Charts on casual employment, occupation and industry (November 2021)
Charts on casual employment, occupation and industry (August 2021)
Charts on casual employment, occupation and industry (May 2021)
Changing female employment over time (February 2021)
Insights into casual employment, occupation and industry (November 2020)
Strong employment growth for non-employees (August 2020)
State and territory employment and hours worked (August 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An International Perspective (August 2020)
Flows into and out of employment and unemployment (June 2020)
Insights into industry and occupation (May 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An international perspective (May 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An international perspective (April 2020)
People moving into or out of employment or unemployment every month (March 2020)
How many people work one hour a week (January 2019)
Leave entitlements (November 2015)
Duration of employment (November 2015)
Sector of main job (November 2015)
Estimating jobs in the Australian labour market (February 2013)
Employment in mining in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia (May 2012)
Insights into job attachment, January 2023 (January 2023)
Insights into job attachment during the pandemic (February 2022)
Insights into job attachment during the pandemic (January 2022)
Insights into job attachment during the pandemic (November 2021)
Insights into job attachment during the pandemic (October 2021)
Underemployment: Reduced hours or prefers more hours (December 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An International Perspective (August 2020)
Flows into and out of employment and unemployment (June 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An International Perspective (June 2020)
People who lost a job or were stood down: flows analysis (May 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An international perspective (May 2020)
Hours not worked - Hours-based measures of unemployment and underemployment (May 2020)
People who lost a job or were stood down: Flows analysis (April 2020)
Reasons people are not in the labour force (April 2020)
Employment and unemployment: An international perspective (April 2020)
Underemployment in Australia (September 2018)
Spotlight on underemployment (November 2016)
Measures of underemployment and underutilisation (November 2015)
Full-time and part-time job search (November 2015)
Hours-based measures of unemployment and underemployment (November 2015)
Retrenchment (November 2015)
Did you know - Underemployment (June 2013)
Exploring labour force data on joblessness (February 2012)
Insights into hours worked (January 2023)
Insights into hours worked (December 2022)
Insights into hours worked (November 2022)
Insights into hours worked (October 2022)
Insights into hours worked (September 2022)
Insights into hours worked (August 2022)
Insights into hours worked (July 2022)
Insight into hours worked (June 2022)
Insight into hours worked (May 2022)
Insight into hours worked (April 2022)
Insights into hours worked (March 2022)
Insights into hours worked (February 2022)
Insights into hours worked (January 2022)
Insights into hours worked (December 2021)
Insights into hours worked (November 2021)
Insights into hours worked (October 2021)
Insights into hours worked (September 2021)
Insights into hours worked (August 2021)
Insights into hours worked (July 2021)
Insights into hours worked (June 2021)
Insights into hours worked (May 2021)
Insights into hours worked (April 2021)
Insights into hours worked (March 2021)
How many people work one hour a week? (March 2021)
Insights into hours worked (February 2021)
Insights into hours worked (January 2021)
Insights into hours worked (December 2020)
Insights into hours worked (November 2020)
Insights into hours worked (October 2020)
Insights into hours worked (September 2020)
Insights into hours worked (August 2020)
State and territory employment and hours worked (August 2020)
Insights into hours worked (July 2020)
Insights into hours worked (June 2020)
Hours not worked - Hours-based measures of unemployment and underemployment (May 2020)
Insights into hours worked (May 2020)
People working fewer hours (April 2020)
Insights into hours worked (April 2020)
Reasons for working fewer hours (March 2020)
Insights into hours worked (March 2020)
Insights into detailed Labour Force Survey hours worked data (February 2020)
Revisions to monthly hours worked in all jobs (July 2016)
Impacts on the Australian labour market: A regional perspective (April 2020)
Advice on reporting regional labour force data (December 2017)
Analysis of changes to Labour Force regional estimates (February 2014)
ABS Labour Statistics: A broad range of information (July 2019)
500th issue of 6202.0 (January 2018)
Labour Force Survey pivot tables (August 2017)
Expanded education data from the Labour Force Survey (August 2016)
Change to Status in Employment output (July 2015)
Forthcoming improvements to the content of the Labour Force and Labour Supplementary Surveys (January 2013)
Upcoming changes to the Labour Force Survey (July 2012)
Labour Household Surveys content review (June 2012)
Major Rebenchmarking of Labour Force Estimates (November 2022)
Improvement to the trending method for Labour Force rates and ratios (October 2019)
Assessing volatility in Labour Force statistics (July 2019)
On-line collection in the Labour Force Survey (April 2019)
Annual seasonal re-analysis (March 2019)
Improvements to trend estimation (March 2018)
Major re-benchmarking of Labour Force series (October 2017)
Changes to filter lengths used in labour statistics (February 2017)
Update on recommendation 7 from the independent technical review (November 2015)
Progress with recommendations from the independent technical review (July 2015)
Update on recommendations 10 and 11 from the independent technical review (June 2015)
Update on recommendation 7 from the independent technical review (May 2015)
Update on recommendations from the independent technical review (March 2015)
Rebenchmarking Labour Force estimates (February 2015)
Independent technical review into the Labour Force Survey (November 2014)
Removing the effect of supplementary surveys from seasonally adjusted estimates (October 2014)
Rebenchmarking Labour Force estimates to the 2011 Census (January 2014)
New Labour Force sample design (May 2013)
Transition to online collection of the Labour Force survey (April 2013)
Rebenchmarking of Labour Force series (November 2012)
Population benchmarks and Labour Force Survey (April 2012)
Historical revisions (February 2011)
Impact of the floods on the Labour Force Survey (January 2011)
This release previously used catalogue number 6202.0.