Labour Force, Australia

Latest release

Headline estimates of employment, unemployment, underemployment, participation and hours worked from the monthly Labour Force Survey

Reference period
May 2025
Released
19/06/2025
  • Next Release 17/07/2025
    Labour Force, Australia, June 2025
  • Next Release 14/08/2025
    Labour Force, Australia, July 2025
  • Next Release 18/09/2025
    Labour Force, Australia, August 2025
  • View all releases

Key statistics

In trend terms, in May 2025:

  • unemployment rate remained at 4.1%.
  • participation rate remained at 67.0%.
  • employment increased to 14,636,800.
  • employment to population ratio remained at 64.3%.
  • underemployment rate remained at 5.9%.
  • monthly hours worked increased to 1,979 million.

In seasonally adjusted terms, in May 2025:

  • unemployment rate remained at 4.1%.
  • participation rate decreased to 67.0%.
  • employment decreased to 14,620,600.
  • employment to population ratio decreased to 64.2%.
  • underemployment rate decreased to 5.9%.
  • monthly hours worked increased to 1,994 million.
  • full-time employment increased by 38,700 to 10,103,900 people.
  • part-time employment decreased by 41,100 to 4,516,700 people.
Key statistics - Trend
Apr-25May-25Monthly changeMonthly change (%)Yearly changeYearly change (%)
Employed people14,608,80014,636,80028,0000.2%332,0002.3%
Unemployed people619,300620,8001,5000.2%21,3003.6%
Unemployment rate4.1%4.1%0.0 ptsna0.0 ptsna
Underemployment rate5.9%5.9%0.0 ptsna-0.6 ptsna
Participation rate67.0%67.0%0.0 ptsna0.2 ptsna
Monthly hours worked in all jobs1,976 million1,979 million3 million0.1%39 million2.0%
Key statistics - Seasonally adjusted
Apr-25May-25Monthly changeMonthly change (%)Yearly changeYearly change (%)
Employed people14,623,10014,620,600-2,5000.0%329,1002.3%
Unemployed people620,900618,300-2,600-0.4%28,2004.8%
Unemployment rate4.1%4.1%0.0 ptsna0.1 ptsna
Underemployment rate6.0%5.9%-0.1 ptsna-0.8 ptsna
Participation rate67.1%67.0%-0.1 ptsna0.3 ptsna
Monthly hours worked in all jobs1,969 million1,994 million25 million1.3%60 million3.1%

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.

For definitions of labour statistics used in this publication, please refer to Glossary of Labour Force, Australia methodology.

Survey impacts and changes

Labour Force Survey TableBuilder product update

The ABS has released updated Labour Force Survey data into TableBuilder. Data from August 2006 to April 2025 is now available. 

New TableBuilder users need to register to gain access. Existing TableBuilder users can request access to the dataset by contacting microdata.access@abs.gov.au.

Further information about this product, as well as other Labour Force Survey outputs, can be found in the Labour Force Survey products and data item guide.

Adding age and sex to modelled regional labour force estimates

Quarterly rebenchmarking of labour force statistics

Seasonal adjustment and trend estimates

Managing the impacts of natural disasters on Labour Force Statistics

Survey response and timeline

Unemployment

In trend terms, in May 2025:

  • unemployment rate remained at 4.1%.
  • unemployed people increased by 1,500 to 620,800.
  • youth unemployment rate increased to 9.2%.

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, May 2025

Employment

In trend terms, in May 2025, employment increased by 28,000 people (0.2%) to 14,636,800 people. 

Flows into and out of 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, May 2025.

Full-time and part-time employment

In trend terms, in May 2025:

  • full-time employment increased by 20,500 to 10,092,900 people, and part-time employment increased by 7,500 to 4,544,000 people.
  • part-time share of employment was 31.0%.

 

Employment-to-population ratio

In trend terms, in May 2025, 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, May 2025.

Hours worked

In trend terms, in May 2025, monthly hours worked in all jobs increased to 1,979 million hours.

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, May 2025.

Participation

In trend terms, in May 2025, the participation rate:

  • remained at 67.0%.
  • decreased to 70.8% for men and increased to 63.3% for women.

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, May 2025.

Underemployment

In trend terms, in May 2025:

  • underemployment rate remained at 5.9%.
  • underutilisation rate remained at 10.0%.

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, May 2025.

States and Territories

May 2025 - Trend
New South WalesVictoriaQueenslandSouth AustraliaWestern AustraliaTasmaniaNorthern TerritoryAustralian Capital TerritoryAustralia
Employed people4,507,5003,780,4003,008,900973,5001,663,500282,800145,200275,40014,636,800
Employed people - monthly change0.1%0.2%0.4%0.3%0.2%0.3%0.4%0.0%0.2%
Employment to population ratio63.5%64.6%64.7%61.3%66.6%58.3%70.4%69.5%64.3%
Employment to population ratio - monthly change0.0 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.1 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.2 pts-0.1 pts0.0 pts
Unemployment rate4.0%4.4%4.0%4.0%3.8%3.9%4.0%3.4%4.1%
Unemployment rate - monthly change0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.0 pts
Underemployment rate5.5%6.3%6.1%6.3%5.4%7.5%3.4%4.9%5.9%
Underemployment rate - monthly change-0.1 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts0.0 pts
Participation rate66.2%67.6%67.4%63.8%69.3%60.7%73.3%72.0%67.0%
Participation rate - monthly change0.0 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.1 pts0.0 pts0.1 pts0.2 pts-0.1 pts0.0 pts
May 2025 - Seasonally adjusted
New South WalesVictoriaQueenslandSouth AustraliaWestern AustraliaTasmaniaNorthern TerritoryAustralian Capital TerritoryAustralia
Employed people4,497,0003,778,5003,018,100975,7001,665,200283,400144,500271,90014,620,600
Employed people - monthly change-0.5%-0.4%0.5%1.2%1.0%1.0%0.5%-2.0%0.0%
Employment to population ratio63.4%64.6%64.9%61.4%66.7%58.5%70.1%68.7%64.2%
Employment to population ratio - monthly change-0.4 pts-0.3 pts0.2 pts0.7 pts0.5 pts0.6 pts0.3 pts-1.4 pts-0.1 pts
Unemployment rate4.1%4.4%3.7%4.3%3.9%4.0%4.1%4.2%4.1%
Unemployment rate - monthly change0.2 pts0.2 pts-0.5 pts0.4 pts-0.2 pts0.2 pts0.1 pts0.5 pts0.0 pts
Underemployment rate5.2%6.3%6.2%6.2%5.5%7.4%3.4%4.7%5.9%
Underemployment rate - monthly change-0.8 pts-0.1 pts0.4 pts-0.3 pts0.3 pts0.0 pts-0.1 pts-1.2 pts-0.1 pts
Participation rate66.1%67.6%67.4%64.2%69.5%60.9%73.1%71.7%67.0%
Participation rate - monthly change-0.3 pts-0.2 pts-0.2 pts1.0 pts0.4 pts0.7 pts0.4 pts-1.1 pts-0.1 pts

Historical charts

Historical charts for employed, unemployed, unemployment rate and participation rate from August 1966 to May 2025

Rotation group analysis

Sample composition and rotation

Estimates for the incoming and outgoing rotation groups

States and Territories

Comparability with seasonally adjusted and trend data

Contribution from sample components to estimates

Data downloads

Labour Force Survey results are released in three stages.

  1. Spreadsheets of the headline indicators are published in this release
  2. Additional, more detailed spreadsheets and pivot tables are published in Labour Force, Australia, Detailed one week after this first release
  3. Longitudinal labour force microdata are released in the ABS DataLab on a monthly basis, one day after the detailed release (see Microdata: Longitudinal Labour Force, Australia)

See the Survey output section of Labour Force, Australia methodology for more information.

Labour Force status

Data files

The Labour Account is the best source of quarterly data for the market and non-market sectors. For information, see Industry employment guide.

The ABS is currently reviewing the usefulness of the market and non-market sector data in Table 21 of the headline Labour Force release.

Hours worked

Data files

Underemployment and underutilisation

Data files

Flows into and out of employment

GM1 - Labour force status and Gross changes (flows) by Age, Sex, State and Territory, June 2006 to May 2025

GM1 - Labour force status and Gross changes (flows) by Age, Sex, State and Territory, Historical (from February 1991)

All time series spreadsheets

All time series spreadsheets

Data Explorer datasets

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 monthly hours worked by Sex, State and Territory - Monthly hours worked by employed people, monthly, July 1978 and onwards.

Labour Force status by Age Groups - Number of people employed, unemployed and not in the labour force, monthly, February 1978 and onwards.

Labour Force Educational Attendance - Educational attendance (Full Time) for 15-24 year olds by State, Territory and Sex, monthly, April 1986 and onwards.

Article archive

Employment and jobs

Unemployment and underemployment

Hours worked

Methodology

Previous catalogue number

This release previously used catalogue number 6202.0.

Back to top of the page