New figures have revealed the unemployment rate was steady at 5.1% in the March quarter.
The rate was unchanged from the December quarter.
But it remains the highest the unemployment rate has been since 2020, having risen over the past two years after coming off record lows during the pandemic.
Today’s newly-released labour figures were slightly below economists’ expectations and the Reserve Bank’s forecast for unemployment..
Data also revealed more Kiwis were now in part-time work this year as compared to last.
Some cause for optimism in jobless figures but the Reserve Bank warns there are still challenges ahead. (Source: 1News)
Stats NZ labour market spokesperson Abby Johnston said seasonally adjusted levels of unemployment remained at 156,000 between the two most recent quarters.
“While unemployment was unchanged over the quarter, longer-term trends mean the labour market appears quite different to the same quarter last year,” she said.
Annually, unemployment rose by 22,000 to 156,000, as measured by Stats NZ’s Household Labour Force Survey.
Part-time employment grows over past year
Employment remained relatively flat over the March quarter and decreased 21,000 annually to 2,914,000, according to Stats NZ. But the annual fall in employment was accompanied by a shift from full-time to part-time work.
The number of people in full-time employment fell by 45,000 over the year, while the number in part-time employment grew by 25,000.
Employees are classed as part-time if they usually work less than 30 hours per week.
“Approximately 21% of employed people work part-time – 12% of men and 30% of women,” Johnston said.
Unemployment rate slightly below forecast
In February, the Reserve Bank picked unemployment ticking up to 5.2% in the March quarter, before peaking at that level and slowly falling towards the end of the year.
Bank economists had picked between 5.2% and 5.3% for the rate before today’s release, having suggested a small rise in unemployment in the March quarter.
In a report last week, Westpac senior economist Michael Gordon said: “While the New Zealand economy has started to regain some momentum since late last year, the labour market remains in a soft patch.
“The monthly jobs data has stabilised and even ticked up a little in recent months, but not by enough to match the growth in the population, which is likely to mean a further rise in the unemployment rate.
“At the same time, the ongoing degree of spare capacity in the labour market will continue to put downward pressure on wage growth.”
