Australian employment rate drops on second wave of virus

Australia had seen its employment rate dropping 1.1% between mid-June and mid-July, weekly data showed on Tuesday. In addition to this, the southeastern state of Victoria recorded the sharpest plunge in employment as the state suffers from a fresh wave of virus cases.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), total payroll jobs declined 2.2% in Victoria alone as virus-related restrictions were reimplemented following an upsurge in new cases. The state had documented a total of 384 fresh virus cases on Tuesday, surpassing its 532 record seen on Monday.

Virus-driven efforts and economic resumption heavily contributed to the country’s employment growth. This salvaged around 35% of payroll jobs lost from the virus outbreak, Tuesday’s figures showed. However, the country’s unemployment rate advanced 7.4% in June, placing higher than its initial record of 5.2%.