Original article by Roy Morgan
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 18-Mar-26

In February 2026, Australian ‘real’ unemployment fell 97,000 to 1,721,000 (10.6% of the workforce, down 0.6%), although under-employment surged 216,000 to a record high of 1,892,000 (up 1.3% to 11.6%). In total, 3.61 million Australians (22.2% of the workforce) were either unemployed or under-employed in February. Roy Morgan estimates the overall workforce size (which adds together the employed and unemployed) at a record high just above 16.2 million in February – 16,263,000 to be exact, up 51,000 on a month ago, and representing 69.8% of Australians aged 14+. Employment increased by 148,000 to 14,542,000; driving the increase was a rise in part-time employment (up 169,000 to 5,242,000), while full-time employment fell 21,000 to 9,300,000.

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