New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: % Change over Previous Period data was reported at -0.352 % in Jun 2018. This records a decrease from the previous number of 0.474 % for Mar 2018. New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: % Change over Previous Period data is updated quarterly, averaging 0.278 % from Mar 1989 (Median) to Jun 2018, with 118 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.307 % in Mar 2010 and a record low of -6.288 % in Sep 2009. New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: % Change over Previous Period data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by International Monetary Fund. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.IMF.IFS: Labour Force, Employment and Unemployment: Quarterly.

The labour market statistics information release combines data from three surveys to present a broad picture of the labour market. From the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS) we provide a picture of New Zealand's labour force – these statistics relate to employment, unemployment, and people not in the labour force. The Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) estimates the demand for labour by New Zealand businesses – the levels and changes in employment, total weekly gross earnings, total weekly paid hours, average hourly and average weekly earnings, and average weekly paid hours in the industries we survey. The Labour Cost Index (LCI) measures changes in salary and wage rates for a fixed quantity and quality of labour input. It is a measure of wage inflation, reflecting changes in the rates that employers pay to have the same job done to the same standard.

The statistic shows the distribution of employment in New Zealand by economic sector from 2012 to 2022. In 2022, 6.02 percent of the employees in New Zealand were active in the agricultural sector, 20.77 percent in industry and 73.2 percent in the service sector.

New Zealand NZT Forecast: Unemployment Rate: sa data was reported at 4.100 % in 2023. This stayed constant from the previous number of 4.100 % for 2022. New Zealand NZT Forecast: Unemployment Rate: sa data is updated yearly, averaging 5.350 % from Jun 1998 (Median) to 2023, with 26 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 7.100 % in 2010 and a record low of 3.400 % in 2006. New Zealand NZT Forecast: Unemployment Rate: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by New Zealand Treasury. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.G035: Labour Force Statistics: Forecast: New Zealand Treasury.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Labor Force Total: From 15 to 64 Years for New Zealand (LFAC64TTNZQ647N) from Q1 1986 to Q4 2024 about New Zealand, 15 to 64 years, labor force, and labor.

The labor force participation rate of persons aged 65 years and over in New Zealand in the second quarter of 2020 was almost 25 percent. The participation rate peaked in the fourth quarter of 2020 with the figure crossing 25 percent.

New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: Female: % of Total Labour Force data was reported at 47.382 % in 2017. This records an increase from the previous number of 47.364 % for 2016. New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: Female: % of Total Labour Force data is updated yearly, averaging 45.990 % from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2017, with 28 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 47.382 % in 2017 and a record low of 43.139 % in 1990. New Zealand NZ: Labour Force: Female: % of Total Labour Force data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.World Bank: Labour Force. Female labor force as a percentage of the total show the extent to which women are active in the labor force. Labor force comprises people ages 15 and older who supply labor for the production of goods and services during a specified period.; ; Derived using data from International Labour Organization, ILOSTAT database and World Bank population estimates. Labor data retrieved in November 2017.; Weighted average; Data up to 2016 are estimates while data from 2017 are projections.

4.4 percent of the labor force in New Zealand were unemployed as of the first quarter of 2020. According to world bank estimates, the annual share of the labor force that were unemployed in 2019 was at 4.07 percent. By international standards, however, this value is relatively low.

Employment opportunities

After experiencing an economic downtown following the 2008 global financial crisis, the labor market in New Zealand has been slow to recover to pre-recession levels. This can be observed in the unemployment rate of the country, as well as in other economic indicators. That’s not to say the labor market isn’t improving - by 2020, employment in the country was estimated to continue increasing to 2.72 million people. However this estimate was made before the coronavirus crisis in early 2020. The country’s labor force participation rate, a measure of an economy’s active labor force, has also continued to increase.

The job market

New Zealand’s employment landscape is dominated by the services sector; over 70 percent of the workforce are employed in this economic sector. Although the agriculture and goods-producing sectors have been historically strong, the shift towards the services sector is becoming more evident across the nation.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Labor Force Total: From 55 to 64 Years for New Zealand (LFAC55TTNZA647N) from 1986 to 2024 about 55 to 64 years, New Zealand, labor force, and labor.

In the second quarter of 2021, around 70.2 percent of the working-age population in New Zealand was included in the labor force. In the previous quarter, the labor force participation rate stood at around 70.7 percent.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Inactivity Rate Female: From 15 to 64 Years for New Zealand (LRIN64FENZQ156S) from Q1 1986 to Q4 2024 about New Zealand, 15 to 64 years, females, participation, labor force, labor, and rate.

New Zealand Labour Force data was reported at 3,083.700 Person th in Dec 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 3,057.100 Person th for Sep 2024. New Zealand Labour Force data is updated quarterly, averaging 2,164.100 Person th from Mar 1986 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 156 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 3,084.200 Person th in Dec 2023 and a record low of 1,627.600 Person th in Sep 1989. New Zealand Labour Force data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Stats NZ. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.G017: Household Labour Force Survey: Labour Force.

New Zealand's official employment and unemployment statistics are sourced from the Household Labour Force Survey. Data on the number of people employed in New Zealand and the unemployment rate is available from 1970.

Graph and download economic data for Infra-Annual Labor Statistics: Labor Force Participation Rate Total: From 15 to 64 Years for New Zealand (LRAC64TTNZA156S) from 1986 to 2024 about New Zealand, 15 to 64 years, participation, labor force, labor, and rate.

New Zealand Labour Force: sa: Male data was reported at 1,608.000 Person th in Dec 2024. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,607.000 Person th for Sep 2024. New Zealand Labour Force: sa: Male data is updated quarterly, averaging 1,160.500 Person th from Mar 1986 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 156 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,617.000 Person th in Dec 2023 and a record low of 936.000 Person th in Mar 1990. New Zealand Labour Force: sa: Male data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Stats NZ. The data is categorized under Global Database’s New Zealand – Table NZ.G017: Household Labour Force Survey: Labour Force.

As of June 2019, the Auckland region had the highest number of employed Maori in New Zealand, at about 71.9 thousand employees. In total, the employment count for Maori in New Zealand in that year was about 318.1 thousand employees.

Labour market statistics (disability) provides comparisons between labour market measures for disabled and non-disabled people in New Zealand. Information includes labour market participation and employment rates as well as differences in wages and salaries received.

Labour market statistics (disability) provides comparisons between labour market measures for disabled and non-disabled people in New Zealand. Information includes labour market participation and employment rates as well as differences in wages and salaries received.

As of June 2019, professional occupations had the highest employment share of Maori in New Zealand, at about 18 percent. In contrast, around seven percent of Maori employed in New Zealand had sales positions.

The statistic shows the labor force participation rate in New Zealand in 2020, by ethnicity. That year, around 70.6 percent of the European working age population in New Zealand were part of the labor force.