Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia

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Experimental weekly estimates on the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on employee jobs and wages, sourced from Single Touch Payroll data

Reference period
Week ending 11 July 2020
Released
28/07/2020

Key statistics

Between the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) and the week ending 11 July 2020:
 

  • Payroll jobs decreased by 5.6%
  • Total wages decreased by 4.8%
  1. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.


Key COVID-19 dates leading up to the week ending 11 July 2020:

  • 22 March: Prime Minister announces Stage 2 lock down changes, which are progressively implemented
  • 30 March: Prime Minister announces JobKeeper program
  • 8 May: Initial payroll deadline for the JobKeeper program
  • 8 May: Prime Minister announces RoadMap to a COVIDSafe Australia
  • 1 July: Stay at Home restrictions commence for selected Melbourne postcodes
  • 8 July: Stay at Home restrictions commence for metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire
     

Key COVID-19 dates after the week ending 11 July 2020:

  • 12 July: Early Childhood Education and Care Relief Package ceased
  • 20 July: Altered eligibility for JobKeeper payments for child care providers in place
  • 21 July: Prime Minister announces changes to and extension of JobKeeper program

Jobs and wages by state and territory

Since the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) the largest changes were:

  • Payroll jobs : Victoria decreased by 7.3% and Tasmania decreased by 6.8%
  • Total wages : Western Australia decreased by 7.0% and Tasmania decreased by 6.9%
     

Table 1 - Percentage change by states and territories

 Payroll jobsTotal wages
Change between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 JulyChange between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 July
NSW-0.7%-5.3%-1.3%-4.3%
Vic.-1.4%-7.3%-3.0%-4.8%
Qld-0.2%-5.0%-1.7%-4.7%
SA0.2%-5.5%-0.7%-4.1%
WA0.0%-3.1%-1.5%-7.0%
Tas.-0.5%-6.8%-2.4%-6.9%
NT-0.9%-3.7%-1.4%-3.3%
ACT-1.2%-6.4%-2.2%-3.2%
Australia-0.6%-5.6%-1.9%-4.8%

a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.

Jobs and wages by sex

Since the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) the largest changes were:

  • Payroll jobs : Those worked by females decreased by 5.5% and those worked by males decreased by 5.8%
  • Total wages : Payments to males decreased by 6.6% and payments to females decreased by 2.4%
     

Table 2 - Percentage change by sex

 Payroll jobsTotal wages
 Change between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 JulyChange between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 July
Males-0.2%-5.8%-1.8%-6.6%
Females-1.1%-5.5%-2.0%-2.4%
All persons-0.6%-5.6%-1.9%-4.8%

a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.
 

  1. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.

Jobs and wages by age group

Since the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case), the largest changes were:

  • Payroll jobs : Those worked by people aged 70 and over decreased by 11.3% and those worked by people aged 20-29 decreased by 7.9%
  • Total wages : Payments to people aged under 20 increased by 19.1% and payments to people aged 40-49 decreased by 6.5%
     

Table 3 - Percentage change by age group (a)

 Payroll jobsTotal wages
 Change between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 JulyChange between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 July
Aged under 200.8%-1.8%-0.3%19.1%
20-29 year olds-0.4%-7.9%-1.8%-1.2%
30-39 year olds-0.3%-4.7%-1.5%-4.2%
40-49 year olds-0.2%-3.8%-1.4%-6.5%
50-59 year olds-0.3%-3.7%-1.5%-6.3%
60-69 year olds-1.0%-6.2%-2.2%-5.9%
70 years and over-2.6%-11.3%-4.6%-3.0%
All persons-0.6%-5.6%-1.9%-4.8%

a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.

Jobs and wages by Industry

Since the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) the largest changes were:

  • Payroll jobs : Accommodation and food services decreased by 18.1% and Arts and recreation services decreased by 16.3%
  • Total wages : Mining decreased by 22.6% and Accommodation and food services decreased by 12.2%
     

Table 4 - Percentage changes by Industry

 Payroll jobsTotal wages
 Change between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 JulyChange between 4 July and 11 July (a)Change between 14 March and 11 July
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing-3.9%-10.3%-6.5%-7.5%
Mining1.6%-2.6%1.1%-22.6%
Manufacturing2.0%-4.2%-1.7%-7.1%
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services2.0%3.1%3.8%2.9%
Construction-1.9%-6.9%-5.0%-8.6%
Wholesale Trade1.4%-5.0%-3.2%-7.9%
Retail Trade1.2%-2.6%-1.1%-1.8%
Accommodation and Food Services-0.7%-18.1%-2.2%-12.2%
Transport, Postal and Warehousing-0.1%-6.6%-1.5%-8.5%
Information Media and Telecommunications1.2%-7.5%-3.2%-8.5%
Financial and Insurance Services2.0%1.0%1.5%-6.6%
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services-1.0%-9.2%-4.2%-11.8%
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services-0.2%-5.6%0.3%2.5%
Administrative and Support Services-1.8%-8.6%-4.0%-5.1%
Public Administration and Safety-0.7%-0.8%-0.4%-3.7%
Education and Training-0.7%-4.3%-0.6%0.5%
Health Care and Social Assistance-3.7%-2.7%-4.1%-1.6%
Arts and Recreation Services2.2%-16.3%1.7%-1.0%
Other Services-2.4%-7.5%-3.8%-0.7%
All Industries-0.6%-5.6%-1.9%-4.8%

a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.
 

Jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4)

Jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4) estimates updated through to the week ending 11 July are available below.

The time series estimates for the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) to the week ending 11 July 2020 are available via Table 4 in the Data downloads section, presented as index values.

Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) regions are specifically designed to reflect labour markets within each state and territory within population limits. In regional areas, SA4s tend to have lower populations (100,000 to 300,000), while in metropolitan areas, SA4s tend to have larger populations (300,000 to 500,000).

For more information, see the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS): Volume 1 – Main Structure and Greater Capital City Statistical Areas (cat. no. 1270.0.55.001).

Table 5 - Percentage change in payroll jobs by region

  14 March to 11 July (Change since 100th case of COVID-19)13 June to 11 July (monthly change)4 July to 11 July (weekly change) (a)
New South Wales-5.3%-1.0%-0.7%
 Capital Region-5.3%-1.1%-1.5%
 Central Coast-3.9%-1.0%-0.8%
 Central West-3.2%-1.0%-1.5%
 Coffs Harbour - Grafton-5.7%-1.6%-0.6%
 Far West and Orana-3.3%0.7%-0.2%
 Hunter Valley excluding Newcastle-2.8%0.6%-0.3%
 Illawarra-2.6%0.8%0.1%
 Mid North Coast-4.5%-1.0%-2.0%
 Murray-5.0%-1.2%-0.9%
 New England and North West-4.9%-2.5%-1.7%
 Newcastle and Lake Macquarie-3.7%-0.4%-1.3%
 Richmond - Tweed-6.2%-0.9%-2.0%
 Riverina-4.5%-0.2%-0.9%
 Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven-2.7%-0.4%-1.8%
 Sydney - Baulkham Hills and Hawkesbury-4.4%-1.6%-0.3%
 Sydney - Blacktown-4.5%-1.1%0.6%
 Sydney - City and Inner South-8.9%-1.4%-0.2%
 Sydney - Eastern Suburbs-7.5%-1.5%-0.3%
 Sydney - Inner South West-7.8%-2.2%-1.0%
 Sydney - Inner West-6.5%-1.6%-0.4%
 Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby-5.8%-2.1%-0.6%
 Sydney - Northern Beaches-5.5%-1.7%-0.6%
 Sydney - Outer South West-4.6%-1.1%-0.3%
 Sydney - Outer West and Blue Mountains-3.9%-1.0%0.1%
 Sydney - Parramatta-6.7%-2.4%-0.5%
 Sydney - Ryde-5.7%-1.6%-0.4%
 Sydney - South West-6.5%-2.2%-0.3%
 Sydney -  Sutherland-3.9%-0.4%-0.4%
Victoria-7.3%-2.2%-1.4%
 Ballarat-6.1%-1.1%-0.3%
 Bendigo-7.4%-3.4%-1.2%
 Geelong-6.9%-2.5%-1.6%
 Hume-5.2%-2.2%-1.2%
 Latrobe - Gippsland-10.2%-5.2%-1.3%
 Melbourne - Inner-9.2%-2.4%-1.3%
 Melbourne - Inner East-6.5%-1.8%-1.3%
 Melbourne - Inner South-7.2%-2.2%-0.9%
 Melbourne - North East-6.3%-2.1%-2.3%
 Melbourne - North West-7.5%-2.3%-1.1%
 Melbourne - Outer East-5.6%-1.7%-0.8%
 Melbourne - South East-6.9%-2.3%-0.8%
 Melbourne - West-6.7%-2.1%-0.7%
 Mornington Peninsula-7.1%-2.0%-1.5%
 North West-10.2%-5.1%-3.6%
 Shepparton-6.3%-2.1%-1.0%
 Warrnambool and South West (b)-8.0%-4.7%-3.5%
Queensland-5.0%-0.5%-0.2%
 Brisbane - East-4.1%-0.9%0.5%
 Brisbane - North-4.5%-0.4%0.9%
 Brisbane - South-5.3%-1.3%0.0%
 Brisbane - West-4.5%-0.9%0.1%
 Brisbane Inner City-6.4%-1.0%0.1%
 Cairns-6.3%0.3%-0.3%
 Darling Downs - Maranoa-5.1%-1.8%-0.2%
 Central Queensland-3.6%-1.6%-1.1%
 Gold Coast-7.1%-0.9%-0.9%
 Ipswich-4.6%-1.0%0.5%
 Logan - Beaudesert-5.0%-0.9%0.6%
 Mackay - Isaac - Whitsunday-3.8%-0.4%-0.5%
 Moreton Bay - North-4.7%-1.2%-0.9%
 Moreton Bay - South-3.9%-0.5%0.4%
 Queensland - Outback-4.7%-1.6%-0.3%
 Sunshine Coast-6.0%-0.8%-1.2%
 Toowoomba-3.6%-0.1%0.9%
 Townsville-5.2%-0.7%-1.6%
 Wide Bay-4.8%-0.5%-0.2%
South Australia-5.5%-0.8%0.2%
 Adelaide - Central and Hills-5.8%-1.2%-0.1%
 Adelaide - North-4.9%-1.2%0.7%
 Adelaide - South-5.2%-1.0%0.1%
 Adelaide - West-6.9%-1.8%0.0%
 Barossa - Yorke - Mid North-6.4%-1.0%0.1%
 South Australia - Outback-5.3%-0.4%0.4%
 South Australia - South East-6.9%-0.7%-0.4%
Western Australia-3.1%0.3%0.0%
 Bunbury-3.1%2.1%-0.1%
 Mandurah-2.9%1.6%1.8%
 Perth - Inner-5.0%-0.3%-0.7%
 Perth - North East-3.2%-0.5%0.3%
 Perth - North West-2.9%-0.1%-0.2%
 Perth - South East-3.6%-0.5%0.3%
 Perth - South West-3.1%0.0%0.5%
 Western Australia - Wheat Belt-4.5%0.6%-0.7%
 Western Australia - Outback (North) (b)-1.9%-0.3%-0.4%
 Western Australia - Outback (South)-4.3%0.8%-0.9%
Tasmania-6.8%-0.8%-0.5%
 Hobart-6.7%-1.2%-0.3%
 Launceston and North East-7.3%-0.3%-0.6%
 South East-9.9%-3.4%-1.3%
 West and North West-5.1%-0.6%-0.4%
Northern Territory-3.7%-0.6%-0.9%
 Darwin-4.0%-0.5%-0.3%
 Northern Territory - Outback (b)-5.0%-1.9%-2.1%
Australian Capital Territory (c)-6.4%-1.9%-1.2%
Australia-5.6%-1.1%-0.6%

a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent weekly movements in payroll jobs. For more information, please see the Data Limitations and Related Revisions technical note.
b. Particular care should be exercised in using this estimate, which is expected to be subject to higher than usual revision in the next release.
c. Australian Capital Territory estimates are state and territory level estimates, as there is only one SA4 in the ACT.
 

Jobs by Industry sub-division

Jobs by Industry Sub-division estimates updated through to the week ending 27 June 2020 were revised and added to this release on Wednesday 29 July 2020.

The time series estimates for the week ending 14 March 2020 to the week ending 27 June 2020 are available via Table 4 in the Data downloads section, presented as index values.

The sub-division level is the second broadest grouping of industries within the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification. Industry sub-divisions are built up from the industry groups which, in turn, are built up from industry classes.

For more, information see the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (cat. no. 1292.0).

Table 6 - Percentage change in payroll jobs by Industry and sub-division (a)

  14 March to 27 June (Change since 100th case of COVID-19)30 May to 27 June (monthly change)20 June to 27 June (weekly change)
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing-4.3%0.3%-0.6%
 Agriculture-3.7%0.3%-0.5%
 Aquaculture-7.6%-4.4%-3.9%
 Forestry and Logging (b)-2.3%-1.5%-2.4%
 Fishing, Hunting and Trapping-6.6%-2.7%-1.1%
 Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Support Services-6.8%2.8%0.7%
Mining-4.2%1.6%0.6%
 Coal Mining0.5%3.8%2.5%
 Oil and Gas Extraction (b)-3.3%24.6%-0.4%
 Metal Ore Mining (b)-8.3%-3.2%1.0%
 Non-metallic Mineral Mining and Quarrying-0.9%-0.8%-1.0%
 Exploration and Other Mining Support Services-3.0%-0.9%-1.2%
Manufacturing-6.3%-2.4%-2.2%
 Food Product Manufacturing-8.2%-4.1%-3.9%
 Beverage and Tobacco Product Manufacturing-16.4%-0.2%-1.2%
 Textile, Leather, Clothing and Footwear Manufacturing-8.5%0.6%-0.5%
 Wood Product Manufacturing-3.4%-1.8%-1.8%
 Pulp, Paper and Converted Paper Product Manufacturing-13.4%-6.3%-2.7%
 Printing (including the reproduction of recorded media)-3.9%0.7%0.0%
 Petroleum and Coal Product Manufacturing-4.5%-2.9%-2.0%
 Basic Chemical and Chemical Product Manufacturing3.1%-2.2%-2.9%
 Polymer Product and Rubber Product Manufacturing-3.1%-0.6%-0.8%
 Non-metallic Mineral Product Manufacturing-7.0%-1.9%-1.5%
 Primary Metal and Metal Product Manufacturing-3.9%2.1%1.8%
 Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing-5.8%-2.6%-2.3%
 Transport Equipment Manufacturing-7.7%-3.1%-1.7%
 Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing-5.0%-2.6%-2.5%
 Furniture and Other Manufacturing-6.8%-2.7%-1.7%
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services-0.4%-0.2%-1.1%
 Electricity Supply1.0%-1.0%-1.3%
 Gas Supply6.6%-2.1%-2.5%
 Water Supply, Sewerage and Drainage Services-0.2%1.0%0.2%
 Waste Collection, Treatment and Disposal Services-3.0%0.2%-1.6%
Construction-3.6%-0.4%-0.5%
 Building Construction-2.6%-0.1%-0.4%
 Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction-7.1%-1.0%-0.7%
 Construction Services-3.2%-0.4%-0.5%
Wholesale-6.1%-2.2%-1.6%
 Basic Material Wholesaling-5.9%-3.0%-2.5%
 Machinery and Equipment Wholesaling-4.9%-3.1%-1.8%
 Motor Vehicle and Motor Vehicle Parts Wholesaling-10.7%-6.1%-1.5%
 Grocery, Liquor and Tobacco Product Wholesaling-6.7%0.4%0.0%
 Other Goods Wholesaling-7.1%-0.5%-1.6%
 Commission-based Wholesaling1.3%0.5%-1.6%
Retail Trade-3.7%1.2%0.0%
 Motor Vehicle and Motor Vehicle Parts Retailing-5.8%-1.3%1.5%
 Fuel Retailing-1.7%-7.6%-7.4%
 Food Retailing-1.6%0.0%-0.2%
 Other Store-based Retailing-4.1%2.6%0.3%
 Non-store Retailing and Retail Commission Based Buying and/or Selling-8.8%0.0%-0.7%
Accommodation and Food Services-19.4%10.7%1.5%
 Accommodation-26.8%7.7%1.0%
 Food and Beverage Services-18.3%11.1%1.6%
Transport, Postal and Warehousing-7.2%-2.3%-3.0%
 Road Transport-4.5%-0.5%-2.1%
 Rail Transport (b)-18.3%-18.7%-19.3%
 Water Transport (b)-21.3%-13.0%-1.5%
 Air and Space Transport-10.5%-1.4%-0.8%
 Other Transport-18.1%6.5%1.3%
 Postal and Courier Pick-up and Delivery Services-3.0%-0.6%-1.1%
 Transport Support Services-6.5%-0.3%-0.7%
 Warehousing and Storage Services-6.9%-0.9%-0.7%
Information, Media and Telecommunications-7.7%3.2%-0.8%
 Publishing (except Internet and Music Publishing)-6.8%0.1%-1.0%
 Motion Picture and Sound Recording Activities-24.2%2.5%2.7%
 Broadcasting (except Internet)-6.2%0.0%-0.4%
 Internet Publishing and Broadcasting-2.5%-1.2%0.0%
 Telecommunications Services-0.3%10.8%-1.7%
 Internet Service Providers, Web Search Portals and Data Processing Services-11.0%-7.2%-3.5%
 Library and Other Information Services-2.6%0.2%-1.1%
Financial and Insurance Services-0.4%-1.1%-0.7%
 Finance-1.3%-0.9%-0.8%
 Insurance and Superannuation Funds1.0%0.0%-1.2%
 Auxiliary Finance and Insurance Services0.3%-1.7%-0.4%
Rental, Hiring and Leasing Services-6.9%1.4%0.1%
 Rental and Hiring Services (except Real Estate)-7.0%1.6%-0.8%
 Property Operators and Real Estate Services-6.8%1.3%0.5%
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services-4.2%-1.0%-0.9%
 Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (except Computer System Design and Related Services)-4.4%-0.6%-1.0%
 Computer System Design and Related Services-3.3%-2.7%-0.7%
Administrative and Support Services-4.9%2.5%0.2%
 Administrative Services-6.0%1.7%-0.2%
 Building Cleaning, Pest Control and Other Support Services0.9%6.3%2.1%
Public Administration and Safety-0.3%3.1%-0.2%
 Public Administration0.0%3.6%-0.1%
 Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services-1.1%1.6%-0.4%
Education and Training-2.8%1.8%1.0%
 Preschool and School Education-2.2%3.4%1.1%
 Tertiary Education-0.3%2.6%0.8%
 Adult, Community and Other Education-14.9%-10.7%1.1%
Health Care and Social Assistance2.7%4.5%0.9%
 Hospitals6.4%8.3%2.1%
 Medical and Other Health Care Services-2.5%1.0%0.2%
 Residential Care Services3.4%2.0%0.0%
 Social Assistance Services2.2%4.4%0.8%
Arts and Recreation Services-20.3%7.5%-1.5%
 Heritage Activities-6.0%0.9%-3.1%
 Creative and Performing Arts Activities-27.0%7.6%0.1%
 Sports and Recreation Activities-25.1%9.0%-2.6%
 Gambling Activities-5.2%6.2%1.6%
Other Services-4.6%2.9%-0.2%
 Repair and Maintenance-2.6%0.6%0.4%
 Personal and Other Services-5.6%4.0%-0.4%
 Private Households Employing Staff and Undifferentiated Goods and Service Producing Activities of Household for Own Use (b)10.3%-2.8%2.2%
All Industries-4.4%1.7%-0.2%

a. Industry subdivision level estimates are subject to a higher degree of reporting volatility and revisions than industry division level estimates.
b. Particular care should be exercised in using this estimate, which is expected to be subject to high degree of revision in the next release.

Jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4) - Interactive map

To view the jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4) - Interactive map, click here

This map uses data contained in Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia, Week ending 11 July 2020.

How to use

  • Search: the magnifying glass icon opens the search function. It is set to look for locations such as addresses, suburbs and postcodes contained within an SA4.
  • Reference week: the date slider can be used to select a particular week of interest, or see changes over time.
  • Data: on the map, an SA4 can be selected to view the underlying data. Data for all SA4s can be in Table 4, available via the Data downloads section.
  • If the maps do not load successfully, please try refreshing this page.
     

More information

Data downloads

I-note

These downloads are currently available in an Excel file format that may not be accessible for users of assistive devices, such as screen readers. Contact us and we can discuss the best way to meet your needs.

Table 1: National spotlight

Table 2: State and territory spotlight

Table 3: Industry spotlight

Table 4: Payroll jobs and wages indices

History of changes

Show all

30/07/2020 - Jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4) - Interactive Map added

29/07/2020 - Updated estimates of Jobs by Statistical Area 4 (SA4), revised estimates of Jobs by Industry Sub-Division and associated updated datacubes added.

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