Media Release - More Australians in full-time work than ever before

Date published : 7  June  2012 

Labour force figures released today by the ABS show that seasonally adjusted employment expanded strongly in May, increasing by 38,900 to a record high of 11,537,900 Australians at work. This is well above all market expectations and reaffirms that the Australian economy continues to outperform the developed world, with impressive growth, relatively low unemployment, and a record pipeline of investment at the same time as contained inflation. Seasonally adjusted full-time employment increased by 46,100 in May 2012, to a record high of 8,107,900, partly offset by a 7,200 decline in part-time employment. Today's result shows that while more people are in work, more people are also looking for work than in April, with the participation rate increasing by 0.3 percentage points to 65.5 per cent.

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