Payroll jobs rise into November

Bjorn Jarvis, ABS head of labour statistics, said the pace of growth in payroll jobs seen during 2022 continued, but the slower growth rate this year continues to point to tightness in the labour market, coupled with disruptions from people being sick and the impact of major weather events.

“With almost three full years of payroll jobs data, we can see some of the recurring weekly seasonal changes in the labour market,” he said.

“The most recent changes in 2022 are more like 2020 than 2021, given the labour market was recovering from the Delta period lockdowns at this time last year.”

The latest data covers the period before the labour market hits its seasonal peak in payroll jobs every year, which is usually around the first half of December.

Payroll jobs rose in all states and territories between mid-October and mid-November 2022, with the largest increase in South Australia (up 1.2 per cent) and the smallest in Queensland (up 0.2 per cent).

South Australia’s increase partly reflected the slightly later school term start, with payroll jobs in the education and training industry accounting for over 40 per cent of the increase over the month.

Nationally, 10 out of 19 industries saw a rise in payroll jobs in the month to mid-November 2022. The education and training industry rose 3.5 per cent and accounted for more than a third (42.7 per cent) of payroll job increases in the month to mid-November 2022.

The rise in payroll jobs in the education and training industry in this period aligns with the seasonal pattern seen in previous years.