The number of secondary jobs fell by 1.2 per cent to 1.0 million in the June quarter 2025, according to Labour Account figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Sean Crick, ABS head of labour statistics, said: 'Secondary jobs fell by 12,200 in the June quarter, and fell 1.9 per cent or 20,500 jobs through the year to June.
'June quarter 2025 was the first time we have seen two consecutive quarterly declines in secondary jobs in the six years since June quarter 2019. As a result, there are now 40,100 less multiple job-holders compared to six months ago in December quarter 2024.
'The fall in secondary jobs saw the proportion of people working multiple jobs decrease by 0.1 percentage points to 6.4 per cent' Mr Crick added.
Despite the drop in secondary jobs, filled jobs rose by 0.2 per cent or 35,300 this quarter to 16.0 million, driven by a 0.3 per cent increase in main jobs.
| Main jobs (Indexed to June 2020) | Secondary jobs (Indexed to June 2020) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jun-20 | 100 | 100 |
| Sep-20 | 102 | 115 |
| Dec-20 | 104 | 123 |
| Mar-21 | 105 | 127 |
| Jun-21 | 106 | 130 |
| Sep-21 | 104 | 122 |
| Dec-21 | 108 | 134 |
| Mar-22 | 109 | 136 |
| Jun-22 | 111 | 144 |
| Sep-22 | 112 | 143 |
| Dec-22 | 113 | 145 |
| Mar-23 | 114 | 151 |
| Jun-23 | 115 | 153 |
| Sep-23 | 115 | 154 |
| Dec-23 | 116 | 154 |
| Mar-24 | 116 | 157 |
| Jun-24 | 117 | 152 |
| Sep-24 | 118 | 157 |
| Dec-24 | 119 | 157 |
| Mar-25 | 119 | 151 |
| Jun-25 | 119 | 149 |
Hours worked rose 0.3 per cent to 6.0 billion this quarter, increasing 1.6 per cent through the year. The rise this quarter was in line with the growth in employed people, up 0.3 per cent.
The growth in hours worked and main jobs drove an increase of 0.1 per cent in average hours worked per filled job.
Demand for workers grew across the economy in the June quarter, after a fall in the March quarter, with job vacancies increasing by 9,600 jobs (2.9 per cent). This saw the proportion of vacant jobs increase to 2.1 per cent for the June quarter and has begun to stabilise between 2.0 and 2.1 per cent over the 2024-25 financial year.
| Quarterly change (%) | Annual change (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Main jobs | 0.3 | 2 |
| Secondary jobs | -1.2 | -1.9 |
| Filled jobs | 0.2 | 1.7 |
| Job vacancies | 2.9 | -2.6 |
| Total jobs | 0.3 | 1.6 |
| Employed people | 0.3 | 2 |
| Multiple job-holders | -1.3 | -0.7 |
| Hours worked | 0.3 | 1.6 |
The growth in filled jobs was driven by the non-market sector, which comprises three industries - Public administration and safety, Education and training and Health care and social assistance.
Non-market sector filled jobs rose 0.3 per cent for the quarter and 3.6 per cent (168,400 jobs) through the year. This accounted for around 62 per cent of the growth in filled jobs through the year to June 2025.
Market sector, the combined grouping of the remaining industries, rose 0.2 per cent for the quarter and 0.9 per cent (103,100 jobs) through the year. This accounted for around 38 per cent of the growth in filled jobs through the year to June 2025.
Through the year to June 2025, hours worked grew 1.6 per cent, driven by the 3.5 per cent rise in the non-market sector industries that accounted for 60 per cent of the growth in hours worked. The market sector rose 0.9 per cent, accounting for the remaining 40 per cent of growth in hours worked.
When comparing filled jobs by private and public sector, private sector jobs accounted for three-quarters of the growth in filled jobs over the past 12 months. Private sector filled jobs rose 1.5 per cent (205,300 jobs) and public sector filled jobs rose 2.8 per cent (66,600 jobs) over this period
Secondary jobs fell by 12,200 jobs or 1.2 per cent in the June quarter, following a larger fall of 45,500 (4.1 per cent) in the March quarter.
The largest quarterly falls were seen in Accommodation and food services (5,000 jobs), Professional, scientific and technical services (3,600 jobs) and Agriculture, forestry and fishing (2,100 jobs).
11 of 19 industries saw falls in secondary jobs for two quarters in a row. Education and training saw the largest drop of 13,400 jobs over the last six months.
| Mar-25 ('000) | Jun-25 ('000) | |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, forestry and fishing (A) | 22.8 | 20.7 |
| Mining (B) | 5.1 | 5.4 |
| Manufacturing (C) | 24.1 | 22.9 |
| Electricity, gas, water and waste services (D) | 2.4 | 2.4 |
| Construction (E) | 39.3 | 38.5 |
| Wholesale trade (F) | 18.0 | 17.4 |
| Retail trade (G) | 101.5 | 103.0 |
| Accommodation and food services (H) | 108.5 | 103.5 |
| Transport, postal and warehousing (I) | 24.6 | 23.7 |
| Information media and telecommunications (J) | 15.8 | 13.9 |
| Financial and insurance services (K) | 50.4 | 49.5 |
| Rental, hiring and real estate services (L) | 15.9 | 14.9 |
| Professional, scientific and technical services (M) | 62.5 | 58.9 |
| Administrative and support services (N) | 138.1 | 137.0 |
| Public administration and safety (O) | 53.9 | 56.8 |
| Education and training (P) | 126.7 | 125.5 |
| Health care and social assistance (Q) | 177.0 | 180.6 |
| Arts and recreation services (R) | 39.9 | 39.1 |
| Other services (S) | 34.3 | 34.3 |
