You could be closer to a pay rise with the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) revealing February’s unemployment rate.
According to the stats, Australia added a total of 4,600 additional jobs during February 2019, although this is against expectations of a gain of 15,000 new positions.
But, one of the main takeaways from the figures was that the unemployment rate declined to 4.9% from 5%.
But there was more to it than the headline suggests. The number of full time jobs fell by 7,300 positions, but the number of part-time roles increased by 11,900 people. There are now 8.7 million full time jobs and 4 million part time jobs. This month points to a shift to a rise of the gig economy and casual employment.
Any decrease in unemployment should be welcomed. More people employed means more spending at Coles Group Limited (ASX: COL), Wesfarmers Ltd (ASX: WES) and Woolworths Group Ltd (ASX: WOW).
It also hopefully means continued payment of loans by borrowers of banks like Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) and Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC). A strong economy also means good news for employment businesses like SEEK Limited (ASX: SEK).
The lower the unemployment rate, the harder employers have to work to attract and retain staff, which could lead to wage rises.
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