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Employment Hero’s latest SmartMatch Employment Report signals a critical turning point for Australia’s workforce. While wage pressures continue to climb, the September data shows preliminary signs of stable productivity and employment growth. However, the road ahead remains challenging as SMEs navigate rising costs and a potential shift in household spending patterns.
Drawing on Employment Hero’s extensive real-time data, covering over 1.1 million employees, the report highlights a job market grappling with high labour costs, fluctuating employment types, and modest gains in hours worked. With CPI rising to 2.1% in September, businesses remain cautiously optimistic while still focusing on balancing wage increases against operational resilience as they enter a crucial holiday period.
Key Findings:
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Median Hourly Wage: At $42.20, median hourly wages increased by 3.8% year-on-year, reflecting sustained wage growth across most sectors. Construction & Trade Services led with a notable 8.4% annual growth, while Science & Technology saw slower gains at 2.8%, indicating a rebalancing across traditionally volatile sectors.
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Hours Worked: After months of decline, average hours worked showed slight improvement with a 2.2% increase month-on-month and a 1.3% annual rise, signalling tentative productivity gains as businesses focus on efficiency.
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Employment Type Shifts: Casual employment saw a sharp rise in hours worked, up 13.3% month-on-month, suggesting businesses are embracing flexible staffing options. Casual wages grew 0.5% monthly and 3.4% quarterly, while full-time annual wage growth dropped by 0.9% compared to August 2024.
Ben Thompson, CEO and Chief Economist at Employment Hero, said: “Our data indicates that while we are seeing early signs of stability, the cost of labour and continued wage pressures present a difficult balancing act for Australian businesses. As SMEs gear up for the end-of-year season, managing these rising costs without stalling productivity will be essential to economic resilience in the coming months.
“Our workforce is at a critical inflection point: the signs of economic recovery are emerging, and inflation is slowly coming down, however, the issue of unsustainable wage growth threatens to prematurely stunt this recovery. Now is the time for SMEs to be cautiously optimistic in the lead-up to the holiday season, which will be pivotal in determining the stability of Australia’s workforce and economy,” said Thompson.
Median Hourly Wages by Sector (September 2024)
|
Sector |
Median Hourly Rate |
Monthly % Change |
Quarterly % Change |
Annual % Change |
|
Construction & Trade Services |
$50.60 |
0.8% |
2.2% |
8.4% |
|
Healthcare & Community Services |
$46.90 |
0.8% |
2.9% |
4.7% |
|
Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics |
$41.00 |
0.5% |
1.3% |
3.3% |
|
Retail, Hospitality & Tourism |
$34.90 |
0.5% |
2.8% |
4.9% |
|
Science & Technology |
$60.70 |
3.1% |
0.8% |
2.8% |
|
(Source: Employment Hero September SmartMatch Employment Report, page 8) |
Employment Type Breakdown: Average Employee Growth
|
Employment Type |
Monthly % Change |
Quarterly % Change |
Annual % Change |
|
Full-Time |
-0.2% |
1.2% |
4.8% |
|
Part-Time |
-0.3% |
-0.5% |
4.0% |
|
Casual |
0.6% |
1.0% |
8.8% |
|
(Source: Employment Hero September SmartMatch Employment Report, page 14) |
The post “Our Workforce is at a Critical Inflection Point”: Productivity & Job Growth Show Signs of Stability appeared first on Small Business Connections.
