Australia employment grew 12.9k in January, better than expectation of 0k. Full-time jobs dropped -17k but part-time jobs rose 30k.
Unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.2%, but participation rate rose 0.1% to 66.2%. Monthly hours worked, however, dropped -8.8% mom.
Bjorn Jarvis, head of labour statistics at the ABS, “While we again saw higher than usual numbers of people taking annual leave – even more so than last year – the 8.8 per cent fall in hours worked in January 2022 also reflected much higher than usual numbers of people on sick leave.”
“As with earlier rapid changes in the labour market during the pandemic, hours continue to be much more affected than employment. This reflects people working reduced or no hours, without necessarily losing their jobs.”
