Australia’s unemployment rate remained steady at 4.1 per cent in February, as labour force participation declined.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 52,800 jobs were lost from the economy, well below forecasts of a 30,000 increase in employment.
The drop in employment came as fewer people were in work or looking for a job, with the participation rate falling to 66.8 per cent, from a record high of 67.3 per cent in January.
Fewer older workers returning to work in February contributed to the fall in employment, with lower levels of employment in the older age groups in February 2025 compared with the same month in 2024.
“This follows higher levels of employment in these age groups in recent years, particularly in 2024, alongside growth in the employment-to-population ratio over the last few years,” ABS head of labour statistics Bjorn Jarvis said.
“In contrast, we continue to see growth in employment for people aged between 15 and 54 over the year.”
In January, the unemployment rate edged higher to 4.1 per cent, but the rate of workforce participation hit a new high and the number of jobs added significantly beat forecasts.
“The participation rate is still relatively high, having reached a historical high last month, and is 0.1 percentage points higher than this time last year,” Mr Jarvis said.
The Reserve Bank’s latest forecasts, released last month, are for the unemployment rate to average 4.2 per cent by mid-year, and remain around that level over the next few years.
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