Unemployment rate at 5.2% despite jobs growth

Despite the addition of 42,300 jobs in May, Australia’s unemployment rate held steady for another month at 5.2%, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Statistics The jobless rate remained stagnant amid an increase in vacancies since most employable Australians were already working or actively searching for a job; the labor force participation rate was at 66%. While the number of full-time posts increased by 2,400, a greater portion of the jobs generated in May were part-time positions totaling 39,800. “The vast majority of jobs created were part time, and as a result, the underemployment rate ticked up again, to 8.6%,” said Sarah Hunter, chief economist at BIS Oxford Economics. In the past 12 months, however, Australia generated a total of 266,000 full-time jobs. “On a trend basis, growth in full-time employment remains robust,” Hunter said.