News · gloucesteradvocate.com.au

Sectors dig in to weather nation job market slowdown

Australia's unemployment rate rose to a five-year high of 4.7% in September, signalling a softening job market. Unemployment jumped 0.4 percentage points in NSW and stayed above 5% in Victoria, while Western Australia fell to 4.2%, where job ads rose more, which Seek's chief economist linked possibly to commodity prices. Consumer-facing hiring weakened between April and June, but consumer spending has since held up and hiring has been stronger than expected. Randstad data shows 36% of Australian workers are looking for or have taken a second job to cope with living costs, while the data centre boom has pushed demand for HVAC technicians up 249%.

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