New employment data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday (14 October) showed the unemployment rate rose 0.1 per cent, up from 4.5 per cent to 4.6 per cent through September, as job losses rise to 281,000 over the last three months.
ABS head of labour statistics Bjorn Jarvis said the fall was led by marked labour market shifts in NSW and Victoria, home to close to 60 per cent of the nation’s employed population.
“In September, there were large falls in employment in Victoria, 123,000 people, and New South Wales, 25,000 people, following the 173,000 decline in August,” Mr Jarvis said.
“This was partly offset by a 31,000 increase in Queensland, as conditions there recovered from the lockdown in early August.”
The participation rate also fell through September, by 0.7 percentage points to 64.5 per cent, for the third consecutive month since June’s “historic” high of 66.2 per cent. Mr Jarvis said Australia’s low unemployment rate reflects low levels of participation through lockdown.

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