Monthly employment data released today by Statistics New Zealand showed our continuing labour market weakness, and particularly challenging conditions for young working people, said NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi Economist Craig Renney.

“There are 21,000 fewer filled jobs than this time last year, and the fall has been led by those starting out in work. There are 25,000 fewer jobs being filled by people aged 15-24 than a year ago. This data shows that right now, it’s a hard place to find work for young people.”

“On an annual basis, weakness in the labour market was particularly evident in Auckland (down 10,500 filled jobs) and Wellington (down 3,000). The number of filled jobs fell 2% in Southland, 1.7% in Taranaki, and 1.1% in Manawatū-Whanganui. This data won’t yet reflect the significant layoffs in places like the Smithfields Timaru site or Winstone Pulp International in Ruapehu.”

“Annually, construction seems to be the most adversely affected sector, with a loss of more than 10,000 filled jobs. Accommodation and food services have 7,000 fewer filled jobs, and manufacturing sees nearly 6,000 fewer filled jobs. Administration and support services sees 7,000 fewer filled jobs. Private sector employers seem to be losing staff quickly in this labour market.”

Renney said, “The pressure is also applying to earnings. Annually, accrued earnings rose 0.8%, the slowest September rate since this series began in 2019. Here, unemployment is forecast to rise further to 5.5% in the near future, while job growth in the US and the UK is ahead of forecasts, and Australia put on an additional 47,500 jobs last month.”

“This data shows that the labour market needs a plan, one that focusses on helping people into good, long-term work. Yet the government is doing the opposite – making work more insecure, taking away essential investment, and it has no employment plan, except more sanctions. There are things we could be doing to manage the pain being felt for working people right now. But the government is choosing not to deliver them.”

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