Rising Jobless Rate Signals Weak Private Sector
“Today’s June labour market data, showing a rise in unemployment to its highest level since the pandemic, points to the impact that our weak private sector is having on the labour market,” said Innes Willox, Chief Executive of the Australian Industry Group.
“The unemployment rate rose to 4.3% seasonally adjusted in June, with an additional 33,600 people looking for work. This is the highest unemployment rate since November 2021.
“This unfortunate outcome is a consequence of our weak private sector labour market. For over a year, there has been negligible jobs growth in the private market sector, with government-supported employment in the public and non-market sectors doing the heavy lifting.
“During 2024, approximately four in five new jobs created in Australia were in these government-supported sectors. As the Australian Industry Group has been warning since the start of this year, this level of dependence on the taxpayer for job creation is plainly unsustainable.
“With the private market sector accounting for two-thirds of employment in Australia, it was inevitable that its sustained weakness would eventually spill over to the broader labour market. It appears this problem is now coming home to roost.
“It is therefore imperative that government takes immediate action to return the private sector labour market to health. There is much that can be done – on tax, energy, regulatory burden, industrial relations and more – to provide better policy settings for private sector investment and jobs creation.
“We look forward to working with the Treasurer through the upcoming Economic Reform Roundtable in August to build a package of sensible reforms that can restart private sector growth,” Mr Willox said.
https://www.aigroup.com.au/news/media-centre/2025/rising-unemployment-a-symptom-of-weak-private-sector-labour-market/