Fewer jobs, more competition for each one. The ABS April labour force figures confirm what many in the market have been feeling.
Australia’s labour market stepped back in April, with the ABS confirming the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 4.5 per cent, its highest level in recent months.
Sean Crick, ABS head of labour statistics, confirmed the scale of the shift. “The number of employed people fell by 19,000 in April, while the number of unemployed people rose by 33,000,” he said.
Both full-time and part-time employment declined during the month, falling by 11,000 and 8,000 people respectively. The number of unemployed people looking for full-time work increased by 11,000, while those looking for part-time work rose by 22,000.
“Compared to what we usually see in April, more people remained unemployed this month,” Crick said.
Despite the employment fall, hours worked rose by 15.8 million hours over the month, or 0.8 per cent, meaning hours worked per person rose by 0.9 per cent in April. The underemployment rate fell 0.1 percentage points to 5.8 per cent.
The trend unemployment rate, which smooths out month-to-month volatility, held steady at 4.3 per cent. Trend employment and hours worked grew by 0.2 and 0.3 per cent respectively, with annual hours worked up 2.7 per cent, growing faster than employment which rose 1.3 per cent over the year.
Women’s jobs drive the decline
The April fall in employment was not evenly spread. A drop in female employment drove the overall decline, with full-time female employment down 19,000 and part-time down 13,000. “This is the first fall in female employment since August 2025,” Crick said.
Male employment moved in the opposite direction, rising 8,000 in full-time roles and 5,000 in part-time roles over the month. Martin Herbst, CEO at JobAdder, said the ABS figures confirmed a direction the market had already been signalling.
“The ABS confirmed today that unemployment is up, and we know in the market that job creation and permanent roles are also both trending down. That whole picture tells you where the market is heading, and it is probably not what job seekers are hoping to hear in this environment,” Herbst said.
JobAdder’s Job Market Conditions Index sits at 48.1, a reading that indicates mixed conditions with a slight edge for employers. “There are fewer roles, and more competition for each one. That’s the pressure jobseekers are feeling that unemployment alone doesn’t capture,” he said.
The JobAdder reading aligns with SEEK’s April Employment Report, released earlier this month, which showed applications per job ad remaining historically high despite easing slightly, and job ad volumes still 1.9 per cent lower year on year despite two months of modest recovery.
For SME owners currently hiring or planning to hire, conditions have shifted in their favour in terms of candidate availability. The pool of active jobseekers has grown, competition for roles has increased, and salary pressure, while still present, may begin to ease if the softening continues.
Budget optimism still on hold
Last week’s federal Budget included cost-of-living measures and some small business support, but Herbst cautioned against expecting an immediate impact on hiring activity.
“While last week’s Budget backed cost-of-living and some small business support, it’s too early to see that land in hiring confidence, but when businesses feel stable, job creation follows. This is what everyone is holding out for,” he said.
The labour market data lands in the same week that the Westpac-Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Index recorded its sharpest monthly fall since COVID, with unemployment fears jumping nearly 10 per cent in April alone. The two datasets together point to a labour market and consumer economy both entering a more cautious phase as the financial year draws to a close.
The trend figures offer some perspective. With the trend unemployment rate holding at 4.3 per cent and trend employment still growing, the April result may reflect monthly volatility rather than a sharp deterioration. But with consumer confidence weak, hiring intent subdued, and the new financial year bringing significant compliance changes for employers, the pressure on Australian small businesses is real and building.
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