The number of filled jobs fell by 0.1 per cent (-10,800 jobs) but remained at 15.9 million in the March quarter 2025, according to Labour Account figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Sean Crick, ABS head of labour statistics, said: 'This is the first drop in filled jobs since the September quarter 2021, when lockdowns were introduced to combat the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant.
'Filled jobs have been rising steadily since 2021, and have grown by 14.6 per cent over that period.'
The small fall in filled jobs in the March quarter was driven by a 4.2 per cent drop in secondary jobs (-46,700 jobs). This was partly offset by a rise in main jobs of 0.2 per cent (+35,900 jobs).
The number of employed people rose by 0.4 per cent (+58,100) in the March quarter to 14.9 million people, while hours worked was up 0.3 per cent.
The smaller rise in hours worked compared to employed persons came as people worked fewer hours during recent weather events.
'Hours worked have continued to grow since the December quarter 2023, despite the impact of adverse weather events,' Mr Crick said.
| Filled jobs | Hours worked | |
|---|---|---|
| Mar-20 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Jun-20 | 94.3 | 91.9 |
| Sep-20 | 96.9 | 96.0 |
| Dec-20 | 99.2 | 98.6 |
| Mar-21 | 100.2 | 99.7 |
| Jun-21 | 101.5 | 101.3 |
| Sep-21 | 99.3 | 98.6 |
| Dec-21 | 103.1 | 101.3 |
| Mar-22 | 104.0 | 101.4 |
| Jun-22 | 106.2 | 104.8 |
| Sep-22 | 106.9 | 106.5 |
| Dec-22 | 107.9 | 108.6 |
| Mar-23 | 109.2 | 109.8 |
| Jun-23 | 110.1 | 111.6 |
| Sep-23 | 110.7 | 110.7 |
| Dec-23 | 110.9 | 110.2 |
| Mar-24 | 111.5 | 110.2 |
| Jun-24 | 112.0 | 111.1 |
| Sep-24 | 113.4 | 111.9 |
| Dec-24 | 113.8 | 112.5 |
| Mar-25 | 113.7 | 112.8 |
'On the demand side, the number of job vacancies fell 4.0 per cent, following a temporary rise of 1.6 per cent in the previous quarter.
'This saw the proportion of total jobs that were vacant down to 2.0 per cent, the lowest since the March quarter 2021.
'Despite the recent falls, job vacancies are still around 44.8 per cent or 102,000 higher than the March quarter 2020. This continues to support the growth in employment seen over that period.'
Multiple job-holding rate drops to 6.5 per cent
The multiple job-holding rate fell to 6.5 per cent from a series high of 6.7 per cent in March quarter.
The number of people working multiple jobs fell by 2.8 per cent (-27,400) to 963,100 people. The drop coincided with a 4.2 per cent fall in secondary jobs. This is the largest drop in secondary jobs since the June quarter 2021, which was impacted by COVID-19 related restrictions.
The fall in multiple job-holding rate was larger for males, down from 6.0 per cent to 5.3 per cent (in original terms). Meanwhile, the female multiple job-holding rate remained steady at 7.6 per cent (in original terms).
| Quarter | Multiple job-holding rate (%) | Multiple job-holders ('000) |
|---|---|---|
| Mar-18 | 5.6 | 717.6 |
| Jun-18 | 5.7 | 727.5 |
| Sep-18 | 5.7 | 734.5 |
| Dec-18 | 6.0 | 774.0 |
| Mar-19 | 5.9 | 765.8 |
| Jun-19 | 5.7 | 745.4 |
| Sep-19 | 5.8 | 769.9 |
| Dec-19 | 5.8 | 770.5 |
| Mar-20 | 6.0 | 784.4 |
| Jun-20 | 5.1 | 637.8 |
| Sep-20 | 5.7 | 723.0 |
| Dec-20 | 6.0 | 780.9 |
| Mar-21 | 6.0 | 796.5 |
| Jun-21 | 6.2 | 817.3 |
| Sep-21 | 5.9 | 765.3 |
| Dec-21 | 6.3 | 848.3 |
| Mar-22 | 6.3 | 857.2 |
| Jun-22 | 6.5 | 895.5 |
| Sep-22 | 6.4 | 897.5 |
| Dec-22 | 6.5 | 924.7 |
| Mar-23 | 6.6 | 947.8 |
| Jun-23 | 6.7 | 958.3 |
| Sep-23 | 6.7 | 960.3 |
| Dec-23 | 6.6 | 953.1 |
| Mar-24 | 6.7 | 973.8 |
| Jun-24 | 6.5 | 952.8 |
| Sep-24 | 6.7 | 984.5 |
| Dec-24 | 6.7 | 990.5 |
| Mar-25 | 6.5 | 963.1 |
Filled jobs down in private and public sectors
Filled jobs fell in both the private sector (-0.2 per cent) and public sector (-0.1 per cent) in March quarter.
This is the first fall in private sector jobs since the September quarter 2021 and first drop in public sector jobs since the June quarter 2022.
Falls were seen in the March quarter for Retail trade (-12,200), Health care and social assistance (-10,300), and Transport, postal and warehousing (-7,000). This is the first drop in filled jobs for Health care and social assistance since the June quarter 2020. Since March 2024, Health care and social assistance has risen by 5.8 per cent.
| Dec-2024 ('000) | Mar-2025 ('000) | |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing (A) | 465.6 | 463.5 |
| Mining (B) | 229.7 | 225.2 |
| Manufacturing (C) | 922.8 | 917.3 |
| Electricity, gas, water and waste services (D) | 140.2 | 141.9 |
| Construction (E) | 1,234.1 | 1,249.6 |
| Wholesale trade (F) | 563.2 | 558.8 |
| Retail trade (G) | 1,527.8 | 1,515.6 |
| Accommodation and food services (H) | 1,151.2 | 1,144.6 |
| Transport, postal and warehousing (I) | 716.0 | 709.0 |
| Information media and telecommunications (J) | 201.2 | 205.0 |
| Financial and insurance services (K) | 518.7 | 517.9 |
| Rental, hiring and real estate services (L) | 293.7 | 290.9 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services (M) | 1,298.4 | 1,317.6 |
| Administrative and support services (N) | 1,057.7 | 1,065.3 |
| Public administration and safety (O) | 878.9 | 876.0 |
| Education and training (P) | 1,268.8 | 1,269.0 |
| Health care and social assistance (Q) | 2,637.4 | 2,627.1 |
| Arts and recreation services (R) | 261.4 | 263.4 |
| Other services (S) | 575.4 | 573.7 |
