The jobs market goes from strength to strength, and has even started delivering for women.
I’ve got some good news ladies.
The labour market just got a bit less crappy for you.
It is true that it continues to get less crappy for everyone. Actually, the labour market outcomes have been strong. Really strong.
We added 70,000 jobs in March, which is a thumping result.
However, it was all in part-time jobs, with full time employment retracing slightly.
But this is a monthly survey and the number can be a bit choppy. I wouldn’t read too much into it.
But on the back of this strong jobs growth, the unemployment rate continues to fall rapidly, heading southwards with a bullet to 5.6%.
That makes it far and away the quickest labour market recovery on record. In past recessions it took years for the unemployment rate to normalise. This chart here compares the Covid experience with the other major recessions we’ve seen in Australia.
Blitzing it. Truly blitzing it.
Especially when you consider the fact that the participation rate is booming right now. More and more Aussies are getting involved in the labour market – either working or looking for jobs. At 66.3%, it’s the highest level in decades.
And that’s probably because the job prospects are so good right now. It’s a great labour market to be getting involved in.
And that’s true whether you’re a man or a woman.
As I said, things are looking up if you’re a working woman.
There was a time there where things we’re looking grim.
Look at what’s happened to employment for men and women since Covid. By May 2020, when things were at their worst, female employment was down 8%, while male employment was down 5%.
It was much worse in the full-time employment market, where female jobs were down 8% and male jobs were down less than 4%.
That cause a lot of people to talk about a ‘pink recession’.
However, as the charts show, it’s all reversed now, and while full time employment for men is still lower than it was pre-Covid, female fulltime and total employment is up 1.5%,
So, it’s a good time to be a woman.
(Ignoring the fact that women still find themselves in jobs that seem to be able to just vanish overnight…)
At any rate, the bigger picture here is that the labour market continues to soar on the back of a booming economy.
There’s good news there for everyone.
DB.