Fewer Australians leaving their jobs amid the pandemic

During the pandemic, workers in Australia are found to be more loyal than usual as compared to pre-pandemic times, according to jobs data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

From February 2020 to February 2021, some 393,500 employees were looking to switch to a better job or seek a change in their workplace, which was below the pre-pandemic level of 520,400 for the year-to-February 2020. 

Since 2016, over 400,000 people have left their jobs citing such reasons and this figure has increased yearly, until COVID-19 hit. This was the reverse for retrenchments. 

During the pandemic, businesses have retrenched about 390,000 workers. But pre-pandemic, the levels of retrenchments were falling on an annual basis. In 2016, 321,900 people were retrenched, and in 2020, 268,100 workers were retrenched. 

Official data also showed that both men and women were less likely to leave their jobs for family reasons during the pandemic, as they juggled more childcare with work from home commitments. 

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In 2020, over 145,000 women left their jobs for this reason, compared to almost 58,000 men. But in 2021, this figure fell to about 116,000 women and 34,000 men.

“This should not be a barrier to anyone entering the workforce and it is critical that the federal government introduce free universal early childhood education and care,” said Australian Council of Trade Unions president Michele O’Neil, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.