New Zealand’s unemployment has reached a 10-year high in the latest quarterly report. Government-funded Statistics New Zealand said that during the last 12 months the number of unemployed rose by 48,000 to 138,000. Women were the most affected, the data showed.
“The unemployment rate rose by 1.0 percentage point during the June 2009 quarter, the largest quarterly increase since the September 1988 quarter,”
- The unemployment rate rose to 6.0% in the June 2009 quarter, its highest level since the September 1988 quarter. The number of people unemployed now stands at 138,000.
- The participation rate remained unexpectedly high indicating that people without a job still see that it is worthwhile to actively seek employment.
- Employment fell by 0.4% in the June 2009 quarter - half the expected fall. The employment decline was driven by a fall in full-time workers (down 1.1%), while part-time employment increased (up 1.3%).
- Total actual hours worked decreased by 1.9% in the June 2009 quarter. The decline in hours worked and the increase in part-time workers suggests that firms are holding on to labour by reducing hours.
- The higher participation rate appears to be driven by older people who may need to stay in the labour force given recent cost pressures, and the deterioration in retirement savings and property values.
- The continued weakening in the labour market has hit youth (15-24 year olds) hard with an annual rise in the number unemployed of 21,000 and a fall in employment of 23,300. The youth unemployment rate increased to 16.3% in the June 2009 quarter.
- Statistics New Zealand reports that New Zealand’s unemployment rate is the 9th lowest of the 30 OECD nations well below the OECD average of 8.3%.
- Although the unemployment rate rose in the June 2009 quarter, New Zealand has been less affected by global events and is in a relatively better position than most other countries. This is due to factors such as having a strong labour market when the downturn began, tax cuts and large reductions in interest rates.
- The outlook for the labour market remains weak. We expect further increases in the unemployment rate over the next year, rising to around 7% by early 2010.
Source: Department of Labour
