The unemployment rate continues to climb, reaching 5.1% in the December 2024 quarter, according to the latest Stats NZ figures – the highest level it’s been since 2020.
It’s up from 4.8% in the September 2024 quarter.
Stats NZ labour market spokesperson Deb Brunning said unemployment has been increasing since late 2022.
“The unemployment rate in the December 2024 quarter was the highest it’s been since the September 2020 quarter, when it was 5.2%,” she said.
The seasonally adjusted employment rate was 67.4% in the December 2024 quarter, down from 69.0% in the December 2023 quarter. (Source: 1News)
Meanwhile, the last quarter experienced the largest annual fall in employment since the year to December 2009 quarter, 15 years ago, with 32,000 fewer employed people over the past year.
The seasonally adjusted employment rate was 67.4% in the December 2024 quarter, down from 69.0% in the December 2023 quarter.
Brunning said: “This was the largest annual fall in employment since the year to the December 2009 quarter.
“Men accounted for 85% of the annual decrease in employment, reflecting substantial falls in the male-dominated occupation groups of technicians and trades workers, and machinery operators and drivers.
“Within the overall decrease in seasonally adjusted employment for men, there was also a shift from full-time to part-time work.
“While the number of men in full-time employment fell by 36,000 annually, the number in part-time employment grew by 9000.
“Over the same period, the number of women in full-time employment fell by 5000, but there was little change in women’s part-time employment.”
The largest contributor was rent, according to the latest Stats NZ figures. (Source: 1News)
Political reaction
Finance Minister Nicola Willis said the figures were the “human cost of lingering effects of economic mismanagement by the previous government”.
“While the numbers today were largely in line with predictions, I feel for people who have lost their jobs or are finding it hard to find work,” she said.
“This underscores the importance of strong economic management. With inflation now under control and interest rates coming down, forecasters expect the unemployment rate to start reducing this year as economic growth picks up.
“While there are some encouraging indicators, such as wages rising faster than inflation, I know Kiwis are still doing it tough. In time, wage growth in a growing economy will mean households will start to feel some relief from ongoing cost of living pressures.”
Meanwhile, Labour’s finance spokesperson Barbara Edmonds said spiking unemployment “is what happens when the Government chooses to slash funding for frontline services, cut public sector jobs, and undermine economic stability.”
“Christopher Luxon’s coalition of chaos continues to plunge New Zealand deeper into recession. Their cuts have devastated the job market,” she said in a media release.
“If the Government was serious about economic growth, it would reverse its cuts and take immediate action to stabilise the job market.”
