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Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia

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Payroll jobs and wages estimates, sourced from Single Touch Payroll (STP) data

Reference period
Week ending 19 June 2021
Released
6/07/2021

Key statistics

Between the weeks ending 5 and 19 June 2021:

  • Payroll jobs increased by 0.3%
  • Total wages paid increased by 0.4%

Update of employer characteristics

The source of industry and employment size characteristics have been updated in this release. This update is part of an ongoing review to improve the quality of employer and jobholder characteristics. The ABS recommends that analyses of previously published estimates be refreshed with the data from this release. For more information, see the Update of employer characteristics in the Methods review section of the Methodology. 

End of financial year reporting

Payroll jobs and wages data during June and July reflect a greater variation in business reporting, around the end of the financial year. This may result in a higher level of variation in payroll jobs and wages estimates and revisions over this period.

Sub-state data available

Updated estimates of payroll jobs by sub-state regions were included in this release on 6 July 2021. 

Fortnightly releases continued for another month

Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia will continue its fortnightly release schedule for another month, in response to the changing COVID-19 situation across the country. See Upcoming changes to this release for more information. 

National

    In the fortnight up to the week ending 19 June 2021:

    • Payroll jobs increased by 0.3%, compared to a decrease of 0.8% in the previous fortnight
    • Total wages paid increased by 0.4%, compared to a decrease of 0.8% in the previous fortnight
    Table 1 - Percentage change in payroll jobs and wages
    In the fortnight since 5 Jun 2021In the month since 22 May 2021In the year since 20 Jun 2020
    Payroll jobs0.3%-0.5%7.3%
    Total wages0.4%-0.4%6.8%

    Estimates of changes throughout this release are calculated using un-rounded index values. They may be different from, but are more accurate than, movements obtained from the rounded index values.

    1. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions

    State and territory

    All geographical areas in this release represent the residential address of the jobholder. 

    The largest changes in states and territories in the fortnight up to the week ending 19 June 2021 were:

    Payroll jobs:

    • the Australian Capital Territory increased by 0.6%
    • Tasmania increased by 0.5%

    Total wages:

    • Tasmania increased by 1.6%
    • the Northern Territory increased by 1.0%
    Table 2 - Percentage change by states and territories
     Payroll jobs Total wages 
     Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (a)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (a)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021
    New South Wales0.1%3.1%0.4%3.3%
    Victoria0.4%1.9%0.4%4.9%
    Queensland0.3%3.9%0.6%5.4%
    South Australia0.3%5.0%0.1%5.3%
    Western Australia0.1%5.6%0.3%2.8%
    Tasmania0.5%2.6%1.6%3.8%
    Northern Territory0.4%8.1%1.0%8.8%
    Australian Capital Territory0.6%3.0%0.4%5.8%
    Australia0.3%3.4%0.4%4.3%

    a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions.
     

    Map 1 - Percentage change in payroll jobs, in the fortnight to 19 June 2021

    Loading map...

    This map presents the percentage change in payroll jobs in the fortnight up to 19 June 2021, by the state and territory of the jobholder's residential address. 
    - New South Wales (0.1%)
    - Victoria (0.4%)
    - Queensland (0.3%)
    - South Australia (0.3%)
    - Western Australia (0.1%)
    - Tasmania (0.5%)
    - Northern Territory (0.4%)
    - Australian Capital Territory (0.6%)

    Sub-state - payroll jobs

    Time series estimates of payroll jobs by sub-state regions, Statistical Area 4 (SA4) and Statistical Area 3 (SA3), are presented as index values through to the week ending 19 June 2021 in Table 5 of the Data downloads. These estimates are only updated in alternate releases. 

    For more information on the geography used in this release, see the Glossary.

    Sex

    In the fortnight up to the week ending 19 June 2021:

    Payroll jobs: 

    • Worked by males increased by 0.3%
    • Worked by females increased by 0.1%

    Total wages: 

    • Payments to females increased by 0.7%
    • Payments to males increased by 0.2%
    Table 3 - Percentage change by sex (a)
     Payroll jobs Total wages 
     Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (b)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (b)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021
    Males0.3%1.1%0.2%1.8%
    Females0.1%2.6%0.7%6.7%
    All persons0.3%3.4%0.4%4.3%

    a. Indexes for males and females can move independently from All persons indexes due to the inclusion of persons with 'unknown' sex in the calculation of the All persons index. For more information see the Data components, total and index calculation section in Data limitations and revisions.

    b. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions


     

    1. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions

    Age group

    The largest changes in age groups in the fortnight up to the week ending 19 June 2021 were:

    Payroll jobs: 

    • Worked by people aged 15-19 increased by 3.3%
    • Worked by people aged 40-49 increased by 0.2%
    • Worked by people aged 50-59 increased by 0.2%

    Total wages: 

    • Payments to people aged 15-19 increased by 5.2%
    • Payments to people aged 50-59 increased by 0.6%
    Table 4 - Percentage change by age group
     Payroll jobs Total wages 
     Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (a)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (a)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021
    15-19 year olds3.3%2.9%5.2%8.4%
    20-29 year olds0.0%1.3%0.2%4.7%
    30-39 year olds0.0%3.5%0.1%4.2%
    40-49 year olds0.2%2.8%0.5%2.0%
    50-59 year olds0.2%3.9%0.6%3.9%
    60-69 year olds0.1%8.2%0.4%10.1%
    Aged 70 years and over0.0%9.9%0.0%17.2%
    All persons0.3%3.4%0.4%4.3%

    a. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions.

    5 year age groups

    Time series estimates of payroll jobs by 5 year age groups (presented as index values) up to the week ending 19 June 2021 are available in Table 8 of the Data downloads. 

    Industry

    The largest changes in industries in the fortnight up to the week ending 19 June 2021 were:

    Payroll jobs: 

    • Retail trade increased by 1.7%
    • Agriculture, forestry and fishing decreased by 1.6%

    Total wages: 

    • Accommodation and food services increased by 3.3%
    • Retail trade increased by 2.3%
    Table 5 - Percentage change by industry
     Payroll jobs (a) Total wages (a) 
     Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (b)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (b)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021
    Agriculture, forestry and fishing-1.6%0.9%-1.6%7.3%
    Mining0.9%0.3%0.0%-19.0%
    Manufacturing0.9%-0.1%1.5%-1.4%
    Electricity, gas, water and waste services-0.3%3.8%-0.8%-2.2%
    Construction0.2%4.1%0.1%5.1%
    Wholesale trade0.7%-0.4%0.5%-2.4%
    Retail trade1.7%2.5%2.3%6.0%
    Accommodation and food services1.4%-4.4%3.3%-0.3%
    Transport, postal and warehousing1.4%-4.5%0.7%-4.4%
    Information media and telecommunications-0.8%-7.4%1.6%6.7%
    Financial and insurance services-0.3%8.6%0.8%0.6%
    Rental, hiring and real estate services-0.2%1.9%-2.0%6.6%
    Professional, scientific and technical services0.5%5.6%0.6%9.3%
    Administrative and support services-0.6%8.9%-2.0%13.0%
    Public administration and safety-0.1%11.3%1.0%10.2%
    Education and training0.6%1.7%-0.7%3.1%
    Health care and social assistance-1.0%7.8%0.5%10.7%
    Arts and recreation services-1.0%-1.9%-0.8%0.6%
    Other services-0.1%4.5%0.1%11.9%
    All industries0.3%3.4%0.4%4.3%

    a. Some industries experience pronounced seasonality in either payroll jobs and wages or both. For more information, refer to the seasonality section of Data limitations and revisions.
    b. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs and wages. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions.

    Industry subdivision - Payroll jobs

    Time series estimates of payroll jobs by industry subdivision (presented as index values) up to the week ending 5 June 2021 are available in Table 6 of the Data downloads. These estimates are only updated in alternate releases. 

    For more information on the industry classifications used in this release, see the Glossary

    Employment size

    Recent movements in payroll jobs by employment size are subject to higher than usual levels of revision (over a longer period) than other estimates. This is particularly the case for small employers (with under 20 employees). Further information is presented on the impact of revisions on the small employers index, in Variation in revisions in Data limitations and revisions.

    Table 6 - Percentage change in payroll jobs by employment size (a)
    Change between 5 Jun 2021 and 19 Jun 2021 (b)Change between 14 Mar 2020 and 19 Jun 2021 (c)
    Under 20 employees-0.9%1.7%
    20-199 employees0.1%6.0%
    200 employees and over1.0%3.2%
    All businesses0.3%3.4%
    1. Indexes for employment size groups can move independently from All businesses indexes due to the inclusion of records with 'unknown' employment size in the calculation of All businesses. For more information see Data components, totals and index calculation in Data limitations and revisions
    2. Care should be exercised when focusing on the most recent movements in payroll jobs. For more information, please see Data limitations and revisions
    3. Care should be exercised when referring to change in employment size pre and post characteristics update. For more information, see the Update of employer characteristics in the Methods review section of the Methodology. 

    Data downloads

    Table 1: National spotlight

    Table 2: State and territory spotlight

    Table 3: Industry spotlight

    Table 4: Payroll jobs and wages indexes

    Table 5: Sub-state - Payroll jobs indexes

    These estimates are updated in alternate releases. They were updated to the week ending 19 June 2021 on Tuesday 6 July 2021.

    Table 6: Industry subdivision - Payroll jobs indexes

    These estimates are updated in alternate releases. They were last updated on Tuesday 22 June 2021.

    Table 7: Employer characteristics - Payroll jobs index

    Contains estimates of payroll jobs by employment size, including state and territory dimension. 

    Table 8: Jobholder characteristics - Payroll jobs index

    Contains estimates of payroll jobs by 5 year age groups, available in this release since 3 March 2021. 

    All data cubes

    Changes in this release

    The following section was updated in this release:

    • Upcoming changes to this release: planned frequency change has been delayed

    The following sections of the Methodology were updated in this release:

    • How data are collected: Other data sources - ABS Business Register
    • Methods review: includes a new subsection on the ABS Business Register update and the refresh of employer characteristics

     

    Post-release changes

    7 July 2021:  Sub-state - Payroll jobs indexes (Table 5 of the Data downloads) were replaced.

    Upcoming changes to this release

    The transition of the Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia to a monthly frequency has been delayed, due to the unfolding pandemic situation around the country. In line with our rapid response capability, we will continue fortnightly releases for another month to prioritise timeliness of estimates surrounding changing COVID19 circumstances. 

    At this stage, two additional fortnightly releases have been scheduled with an additional 2 day lag from the current release pattern:

    • Week ending 3 July 2021, to be released Thursday 22 July
    • Week ending 17 July 2021, to be released Thursday 5 August

    The ABS will review the release schedule in the coming weeks to determine when a change to a monthly frequency can be implemented. 

    First monthly release

    When released, the first monthly release will continue to include weekly indexes, including data for the intervening weeks from the last fortnightly release. 

    The time between the reference week and the release date will also be extended, by around 9 days. This will deliver a 26-day lag in the compilation of estimates, allowing more complete business reporting. The level of imputation will be more than halved in the most recent weeks of data, improving the quality of estimates and reducing subsequent revisions. 

    In addition to quality improvements, the frequency change will also enable an expansion of outputs which will be detailed in a future release. 

    Further information on these changes, including the dates of future releases, will be provided when known. 

    Previous articles

    Previously published articles and information of interest are linked below:

    Previous catalogue number

    This release previously used catalogue number 6160.0.55.001.

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