The unemployment rate has risen to 5.6% in the June quarter, its highest level since March 2014, while the broader underutilisation rate climbed from 12.9% to 13.8%.
Young people recorded the sharpest annual increase, with the rate among 15 to 24-year-olds rising from 33.6% to 37%.
Unemployment reached 6% in the North Island and 3.7% in the South Island. Economists attributed the rise to the labour force growing faster than businesses can create jobs, and firms remaining reluctant to hire despite improving conditions.
They also pointed to “global uncertainty” and higher oil prices which have caused some employers have paused recruitment. The figures are also likely to intensify scrutiny of the Government’s immigration settings, with questions over whether efforts to attract more migrants and international students are outpacing job creation. Read more on interest.co.nz, NZ Herald and Stats.govt.nz.
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Image credit: Hennie Stander
Nearly six years on and we are still trapping the rewards of the labour regime m@&_+ering a holes! Never forget the destruction horse face, napkins bloomers and vierral raged on NZ NEVER!!!?