What a surprise spike in the unemployment rate means for interest rates and the economy
The rate of unemployment in Australia is on the rise again. Official labour force data released on Thursday shows that in the month to September, Australia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate jumped from 4.3% to 4.5%.
Recent articles in Employment
17 October 2025
Fortescue cuts hundreds of jobs in UK and Australia; EV motor making sent to China
Andrew Forrest’s Fortescue Metals is cutting several hundred jobs in the UK and Australia following a decision to send manufacturing activities to China, including for the motors and power trains of its planned giant electric haul trucks.
13 October 2025
Who would be a carer?
Whether because of temporary disability or permanent need, the demand for accessible holiday accommodation is growing with our ageing population.
22 September 2025
1 in 3 Australians in their late 60s are still working, new HILDA survey shows
Australia has seen a dramatic transformation of retirement over the past 20 years, with more Australians delaying retirement than ever before, reshaping expectations for later life.
15 September 2025
The social smog of neoliberalism: How competition breeds violence and division
The Industrial Revolution transformed the material basis of human life. By harnessing energy and perfecting machines, engineers satisfied physical needs on a mass scale.
22 July 2025
Why a surprise jump in unemployment isn’t as bad as it sounds
New figures show Australia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate unexpectedly rose to 4.3% – its highest level since late 2021 – in June this year, up from 4.1% in May.
19 June 2025
The evil phoenix: Quenching the fire of its rebirth
This is a $5 billion scam hurting honest Australians.
6 June 2025
Mental health of workers undermined in New South Wales
The NSW Government is seeking to pursue legislative changes that would ultimately worsen mental health outcomes for working people.
25 April 2025
If I were minister for employment services: No more bastardry dressed up as policy
If I were minister for employment services, I’d begin by stating what should already be obvious: Australia’s employment services system is not fit for purpose.
13 April 2025
Sherlock Holmes investigates the wages explosion that never was
I like to imagine that, if Arthur Conan Doyle were still alive, and had turned his creation, Sherlock Holmes, to solving the economic mysteries of the 21st century, he would have written this conversation:
1 April 2025
Building Australia’s future – For whom?
As the next federal election looms, the Albanese Government is preparing to campaign under a new slogan: “Building Australia’s Future”.
15 February 2025
OSCA’s quiet arrival: Rethinking how Australia defines work
Australia’s new job classification system, OSCA, replaces ANZSCO with little fanfare. Its streamlined approach raises questions about workforce planning, transparency, and the evolving definition of work.
23 January 2025
Reimagining public housing: the transformative potential of Centrelink’s Voluntary Work Program
The current housing crisis is not an accident. It is the logical outcome of transforming homes into investment vehicles. And it has been decades in the building. The only thing unique about the present crisis is that it is now destabilising both the major political parties – in that sense the housing crisis is now a political crisis. The impending federal election campaign will no doubt reveal a raft of proposed political fixes that may or may not exacerbate the crisis.
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