In April 2015, the employment participation rate was stable at 64.8%. Meaning that of all those eligible for employment, close to two-thirds were employed or actively seeking employment. Full time employment was down slightly from 8.137 million in March to 8.115 million in April. At the same time, the number of people in part-time work rose to an all time high of 3.608 million, up from 3.589 million persons the month before. As unemployment ticks just a little higher (6.2% in April 2015), the structural changes to the nature of employment are of particular interest.
The chart below shows employment in Australia, on a seasonally adjusted basis, with the participation rate overlaid on it.
The rise in the number of people in employment over time is clear, as is the rise, more recently, of the participation rate. The number of people in or actively seeking work has been relatively stable over a long period.
What is less evident is the number of people in part time work and the gradual growth of this form of work over recent years. Back in May 2011, 29.9% of the workforce was in part time work. Four years later, that proportion has changed to 30.8%.
Unemployment increased gradually, from a low of 4.9% in June 2011, to 6.3% in July 2014. Since then the unemployment rate has moved sideways, between 6.1% and 6.3%. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the number of people who are unemployed reached a peak in January 2015, at 787,400 individuals. This is displayed in the chart below.
Unemployment data does not measure under-employment. That is, the number of people who despite being in work, are seeking more work, especially in terms of additional hours. With part time work on the rise, it may be that many of those individuals would prefer more hours.
It is difficult to determine the extent to which underemployment exists in the economy, but it is clear that where it does exist, it represents a missed opportunity that in many cases, is as significant as unemployment itself. Adding extra hours to someone’s part time work is generally easier than engaging additional employees.
