The accommodation and food services industry continued to be the most impacted by COVID-19, with a drop of around one in three paid jobs in the industry from mid-March to mid-April, according to new data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics today.
The Weekly Payroll Jobs and Wages in Australia estimates also showed that between 14 March and 18 April (the five weeks after Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) total employee jobs decreased by 7.5%, while total wages paid by employers decreased by 8.2%.
Head of Labour Statistics at the ABS, Bjorn Jarvis, said: “The industries which lost the most jobs continued to be accommodation and food services (-33.4%) and arts and recreation services (-27.0%).
“Job losses in accommodation and food services were greatest in South Australia (-39.7%) and Victoria (-35.6%).
“The new data shows that jobs in accommodation and food services worked by people aged 20-29 and people over 70 decreased the most (-40.8% and -43.7%).”
“Looking at the week-to-week changes, the decrease in the number of jobs in the week ending 18 April was 1.5%, which was larger than the 0.3% decrease in week ending 11 April 2020,” Jarvis said.
Changes in Accommodation and food services industry jobs between 14 March and 18 April, by state and territory.
Jobs and Wages by State and Territory
Since the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case), the largest changes were:
- Employee jobs: Victoria decreased by 8.6% and Tasmania decreased by 8.0%
- Total wages: Tasmania decreased by 9.3%, and Victoria and the Northern Territory both decreased by 9.2%
Between the week ending 11 April 2020 and the week ending 18 April 2020, the largest changes were:
- Employee jobs: Western Australia decreased by 2.4% and the Australian Capital Territory decreased by 2.3%
- Total wages: The Australian Capital Territory decreased by 4.0% and the Northern Territory decreased by 1.8%
Table 1: Percentage changes by States and Territories (a)
|
|
||||
 |
Change in employee jobs
between 11 April and 18 April |
Change in employee jobs
between 14 March and 18 April |
Change in total wages
between 11 April and 18 April |
Change in total wages
between 14 March and 18 April |
|
|
||||
| NSW |
-1.3%
|
-7.4%
|
-1.0%
|
-7.5%
|
| Vic. |
-1.7%
|
-8.6%
|
-0.8%
|
-9.2%
|
| Qld |
-0.7%
|
-6.5%
|
-1.1%
|
-8.3%
|
| SA |
-1.8%
|
-7.8%
|
0.0%
|
-4.5%
|
| WA |
-2.4%
|
-6.6%
|
-1.0%
|
-9.0%
|
| Tas. |
-2.1%
|
-8.0%
|
-1.2%
|
-9.3%
|
| NT |
-2.0%
|
-5.7%
|
-1.8%
|
-9.2%
|
| ACT |
-2.3%
|
-6.9%
|
-4.0%
|
-7.5%
|
|
|
||||
| Australia |
-1.5%
|
-7.5%
|
-1.0%
|
-8.2%
|
|
|
||||
(a) These estimates are revised as additional data become available. Particular care should be exercised in focusing on weekly movements in wages, which are subject to a higher degree of reporting variability and revisions.
Key Overall Statistics on jobs and wages
Between the week ending 14 March 2020 (the week Australia recorded its 100th confirmed COVID-19 case) and the week ending 18 April 2020:
- Employee jobs decreased by 7.5%
- Total wages paid decreased by 8.2%
Graph 1: Changes in employee jobs and total wages indexed to the week ending 14 March 2020
Between the week ending 11 April 2020 and the week ending 18 April 2020:
- Employee jobs decreased by 1.5%, compared to a decrease of 0.3% in the previous week
- Total wages paid decreased by 1.0%, compared to a decrease of 1.6% in the previous week
Key COVID-19 dates:
- 22 March: Prime Minister announces Stage 2 lock down changes, which are progressively implemented
- 30 March: Prime Minister announces JobKeeper program
Commentary
Labor Leader Rebecca White said news that eight per cent of jobs have been lost across the state since mid-March is a stark reminder that businesses need certainty about when they can start to reopen safely, with a COVID-ready plan in place.
She said the figures were ‘awful but not unexpected’.
“Many industries have been affected but the hospitality, arts and recreation industries have been particularly hard hit, with around 30 per cent of jobs lost in that period,” White commented. “Casual employment is extremely high in these sectors, which is another reason why the Federal Government needs to broaden eligibility for the JobKeeper payment.”
She said businesses need information from government about the likely timeframe for reopening, so they can make early decisions about the steps needed to operate safely and within the guidelines.
Data courtesy of ABS.
