Australia’s August Unemployment Drops to 9.1% with Part-Time Job Surge

In August 2024, Australia’s ‘real’ unemployment rate decreased by 1%, dropping to 9.1% of the workforce, following a significant rise in part-time employment. The unemployment count fell by 174,000 to 1,423,000. This reduction was driven by an increase of 136,000 part-time jobs, bringing total part-time employment to 4,901,000, while full-time employment remained steady at 9,387,000.

Overall employment rose by 133,000 to 14,288,000 in August, reflecting growth in part-time jobs. Fewer Australians were looking for both full-time and part-time work, contributing to the decline in unemployment.

Roy Morgan Unemployment & Under-employment (2019-2024)
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source January 2019 – August 2024. Average monthly interviews 5,000.
Note: Roy Morgan unemployment estimates are actual data while the ABS estimates are seasonally adjusted.

Labour Market Trends

Roy Morgan’s unemployment estimates, based on a national survey of Australians aged 14 and above, classified anyone seeking work as unemployed. The ‘real’ unemployment rate is calculated as a percentage of the total workforce, both employed and unemployed.

Despite the improvement in employment figures, the combined unemployment and under-employment rate still stands at 18.6%, affecting 2.92 million Australians. The under-employed, those working part-time but seeking more work, represented 9.5% of the workforce.

Michele Levine, CEO of Roy Morgan, highlighted that the surge in part-time jobs drove the drop in unemployment, while the rapidly growing workforce—up by 377,000 over the past year—has been a key factor in the country’s employment growth.

The ABS comparison puts Roy Morgan’s 9.1% unemployment figure well above the ABS estimate of 4.2% for July. However, when combined with under-employment, the ABS figure reaches a comparable 10.5%.

Roy Morgan Unemployed and ‘Under-employed’* Estimates

Impact and Challenges

While the job market has made strides in absorbing the growing workforce, the high level of labour under-utilisation remains a challenge. Addressing the persistent issue of unemployment and under-employment will continue to be a priority for the Australian government.

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ITECA Releases Its Student-Centric Blueprint For The Next Australian Parliament

The Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA) has unveiled a policy reform agenda aimed at putting students at the forefront of skills training and higher education in the lead-up to the next federal election. The blueprint, described as student-centric, challenges the current institution-focused policies, which ITECA argues are failing students, businesses, taxpayers, and the nation.

Key Points:

• Call for Reform: ITECA criticises the current government’s preference for public institutions like TAFE colleges and universities, which they believe creates significant barriers to accessing quality tertiary education. They argue that this approach disproportionately affects students who choose independent Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) or higher education institutions, leaving them without sufficient government support.
• Student-Centric Focus: The manifesto emphasises the need for reforms that prioritise students’ needs and choices, advocating for a system that allows students to select the provider—whether independent or public—that best aligns with their personal and professional goals.
• Equity and Access: ITECA’s blueprint calls for eliminating discrimination against students who choose independent RTOs or higher education providers. The organisation believes that government policies should ensure a fair and equitable playing field for all tertiary education providers, supporting students’ informed decisions.
• Advocacy and Vision: ITECA’s approach is driven by its members, who are committed to advocating for a tertiary education system that better supports students and creates a more balanced and fair educational landscape.

ITECA’s election manifesto is part of their broader vision for a student-focused tertiary education system in Australia.

For more details on the manifesto and ITECA’s policy recommendations, you can visit their website here.

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Fixing Unpaid Super: A Fairer System for Workers and Employers

Super Members Council

The ongoing issue of unpaid superannuation in Australia remains a significant concern, with a staggering $5 billion lost annually, depriving millions of Australians of the full benefits of the country’s world-leading superannuation system. The Super Members Council (SMC), representing the interests of 11 million Australians with retirement savings in profit-to-member super funds, is calling for urgent legislative reform to address this persistent problem.

The Unpaid Super Crisis

A new report from the SMC highlights the scale of the unpaid super crisis, revealing that in the 2021-22 financial year alone, 2.8 million Australians were shortchanged by $5.1 billion in legal super entitlements. Over the past nine years, the total amount of unpaid super has reached $41.6 billion, with the average affected worker losing $1,800 annually. This shortfall could translate into more than $30,000 less in retirement savings for a typical worker.

The problem is particularly severe among women, people in insecure work, migrant workers, and younger employees. Workers in their 20s earning less than $25,000 a year face a one-in-two chance of being underpaid their super.

The Need for Reform

A major contributor to the unpaid super issue is the outdated system that allows superannuation payments to be made quarterly, rather than aligning with wage payments. This gap makes it difficult for workers to track underpayments and hinders the Australian Tax Office (ATO) from using real-time monitoring tools effectively.

While the Australian Government has pledged to implement payday super reforms by 2026, the necessary legislation has yet to be introduced to Parliament, and the specifics of its implementation remain unclear. SMC CEO Misha Schubert has emphasised the urgency of enacting these reforms within the current term of Parliament, allowing businesses to plan and ensuring that millions of Australians receive their superannuation in full and on time.

“Paying super on payday will modernise the super system and should significantly reduce underpayments,” said Ms. Schubert. “It’s an excellent example of reform that benefits super fund members and makes the system fairer for both workers and employers.”

Enhancing Compliance and Support

The SMC is also pressing the government to set clear compliance and recovery targets for the ATO, a commitment made in 2022 but not yet realised. Although the ATO’s efforts to address unpaid super have increased, they currently recover only about 15% of the nation’s unpaid super each year.

Moreover, unpaid super often comes to light only when businesses go bankrupt. To address this, the SMC advocates for extending the Fair Entitlement Guarantee—a compensation scheme of last resort for workers—to include unpaid superannuation.

A Unified Effort

Ms. Schubert stressed the importance of a unified approach to solving the unpaid super problem, combining legislative action, stronger ATO enforcement, and enhanced support for workers to claim their super after insolvencies. “We stand ready to work with the Government, Parliament, and other key stakeholders to enact these pivotal reforms and ensure Australia fixes the stubbornly persistent unpaid super problem,” she said.

The SMC’s call for reform is a critical step toward ensuring that Australia’s superannuation system works fairly for all workers and that businesses are held accountable for their obligations. By addressing unpaid super, the country can better secure the financial futures of millions of Australians and create a more equitable system for everyone involved.

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