Monthly labour market fact sheet
The monthly labour market fact sheet summarises high-frequency and timely data and surveys with a focus around the impact of COVID-19 on the labour market. It is designed to supplement the quarterly labour market snapshot.
On this page
About the report
The fact sheet presents key statistics on:
- Filled jobs
- Benefit recipients
- Jobseeker Benefit recipients
- Online job advertising
The overview of the most recent month is below with the PDFs for all months at the bottom of the page.
The next publication is on 22 February 2023.
Overview — December 2022
Headline quarterly statistics
Data up to September 2022 quarter
| Measures | Sep-21 | Dec-21 | Mar-22 | Jun-22 | Sep-22 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | 2,819,000 | 2,818,000 | 2,818,000 | 2,817,000 | 2,853,000 |
| — Paid Employee or Employer | 2,432,400 | 2,453,700 | 2,441,500 | 2,445,400 | 2,462,600 |
| — Self-employed | 351,300 | 352,800 | 355,200 | 339,800 | 359,100 |
| Employment Rate | 68.7% | 68.8% | 68.6% | 68.6% | 69.3% |
| Participation Rate | 71.1% | 71.0% | 70.9% | 70.9% | 71.7% |
| Underutilisation | 276,000 | 276,000 | 280,000 | 277,000 | 273,000 |
| — Unemployment | 97,000 | 93,000 | 94,000 | 96,000 | 97,000 |
| — Underemployment | 96,000 | 101,000 | 94,000 | 95,000 | 99,000 |
| — Potential Labour Force | 83,000 | 82,000 | 91,000 | 86,000 | 77,000 |
| Underutilisation Rate | 9.2% | 9.2% | 9.3% | 9.2% | 9.0% |
| Unemployment Rate | 3.3% | 3.2% | 3.2% | 3.3% | 3.3% |
| Not in the Labour Force | 1,185,000 | 1,187,000 | 1,194,000 | 1,196,000 | 1,167,000 |
| Youth Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) | 78,000 | 70,000 | 74,000 | 77,000 | 74,000 |
| NEET Rate | 12.2% | 11.0% | 11.6% | 12.1% | 11.5% |
| Average Weekly Hours Paid (per FTE) | 38.82 | 38.98 | 38.79 | 38.80 | 39.00 |
Source: All measures are from the Household Labour Force Survey except for average weekly hours paid, which is from the Quarterly Employment Survey. Labour Market Statistics, Stats NZ (Data to September 2022 quarter, next release on 01/02/2023). All the data except Paid Employee or Employer and Self-employed are seasonally adjusted.
The recent story
The New Zealand labour market remains resilient with the unemployment rate remaining unchanged (Household Labour Force Survey). Labour remained the top constraint for businesses in the September quarter 2022, with the proportion reporting finding labour as their primary business constraint increasing from 37 per cent to 43 per cent (Quarterly Survey of Business Opinion (QSBO)).
Filled jobs increased by 2.0 per cent over the year to October 2002, the rate was highest among those aged 15 to 19 years. Filled jobs grew in most industries, with the biggest increases in the Information media & telecommunications and Electricity, gas, water & waste services industries. Growth in filled jobs was steady across New Zealand, except in the Hawke’s Bay region where filled jobs fell by 0.2 per cent.
In line with a trend since mid-March 2022, the proportion of New Zealanders on a main benefit was stable at 11.1 per cent of all people in the working-age population. A slight fall of 0.3 percentage points over the year to 2 December 2022 can be attributed to a fall in Jobseeker Support recipients who were work ready (down 6,084 people) or had a health condition or disability (down 9,825 people).
In contrast, some recent labour market indicators show there may be softening in demand for labour. Over the year to September 2022, difficulty finding skilled labour was up 14 percentage points to 58 net negative per cent, indicating that it was easier to find skilled labour (QSBO). Employment intentions eased in November 2022 (4 net negative per cent), the first negative result since October 2020. Intentions were lowest in the Construction industry (19 net negative per cent) (ANZ New Zealand Business Outlook: November 2022). The ANZ results follow the Reserve Bank increasing the official cash rate as inflation is at near record levels (Reserve Bank, Monetary Policy Statement November 2022).
Further, Jobs Online’s All Vacancy Index (AVI) fell by 3.2 per cent in the year to November 2002, the last annual fall was in July this year. The fall follows weakening annual growth in the AVI over the August to October 2022 period. Online job advertisements grew for two out of the eight occupation groups. The strongest growth continued to be for Community & personal services. Over the year to November 2022, online advertising fell in all five broad regions, with the largest softening in the Wellington region (by 6 per cent).
All recent fact sheets
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Monthly labour market fact sheet - December 2022 [PDF 336KB]
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Monthly labour market fact sheet - November 2022 [PDF 355KB]
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Monthly labour market fact sheet - October 2022 [PDF 354KB]
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Monthly labour market fact sheet - September 2022 [PDF 546KB]
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Monthly labour market fact sheet - August 2022 [PDF 445KB]