Australia’s payroll jobs rise 1.3% in first half of January

Australia’s payroll jobs have increased by 1.3% country-wide from Jan 2 to Jan 16, figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) show.

Over the period, payroll jobs had the largest increases in the states of Queensland, up by 2.8%, and South Australia, up by 2.4%. 

“All states and territories reported an increase in payroll jobs,” said Bjorn Jarvis, head of Labour Statistics at the ABS. 

“With the start of a second year of data we can see payroll jobs were 1.0 per cent lower in the week ending 16 January 2021 than they were in the week ending 18 January 2020,” he added.

The accommodation and food services industry has been one of the sectors badly hit due to the pandemic. Payroll jobs in this sector were 14.7% lower in mid-January 2021, compared to mid-March 2020, and 10.9% lower as compared to mid-January 2020. 

The data also showed that even though payroll jobs held by female workers were hardest hit in the early stages of the pandemic, the recovery across 2020 outpaced those of jobs held by male staff. 

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In early January 2021, payroll jobs worked by males remained 6% lower than mid-March 2020, as compared to roles held by female workers, which were 5.2% lower than mid-March 2020. In contrast, payroll jobs worked by males were slightly higher than females in mid-January 2020.