Unemployment rate in NT jumps to 7.9 per cent as ABS estimates effective national rate is 11.3 per cent

THE Northern Territory’s unemployment rate has soared to its highest level in more than 16 years, as “dark times” leads to 835,000 job losses in Australia

THE NT’s unemployment rate has soared to levels unseen for 16 years, though the business peak body warns it could get a lot worse once the veil of JobKeeper is taken away in September.

New figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed NT’s unemployment rate, seasonally adjusted, is 7.9 per cent. In total 5800 Territorians had lost their jobs since March, noting one person can hold more than one job.

A further 3300 people had left the work force entirely, meaning they were no longer looking for work.

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The number of people looking for work in the NT has soared from 7900 in April to 10,400 in May.

The last time NT’s unemployment rate was higher than this was in September 2004, when 8 per cent of the working population were without a job.

Chamber of Commerce NT chief executive Greg Ireland said the current figures don’t take into account the number of Territorians who got to keep their job because of the federal government’s JobKeeper program.

The program is due to end on September 27 though it is currently under review.

Half of all NT businesses, that is 7000, are currently receiving JobKeeper.

“We have a substantial risk in front of us as JobKeeper is withdrawn,” Mr Ireland said.

“The loss of JobKeeper is going have a substantial hit and that will quickly convert into additional job losses.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and Prime Minister Scott Morrison during a press conference at Parliament House on June 18, 2020 in Canberra, Australia. Picture: Sam Mooy/Getty Images

“But I estimate there are about 20,000 Territorians supported by JobKeeper … which would triple our unemployment rate.”

According to the ABS, the unemployment rate in Australia stands at 7.1 per cent though this is cushioned by people leaving the workforce entirely.

If this buffer were taken away, ABS analysis estimates the unemployment rate in Australia would be 11.3 per cent.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison, speaking on Australia’s unemployment figures, described it as “our dark times”.

He also hosed down speculation the JobKeeper program could be phased out early as he faced growing calls to tweak the $130 billion wage subsidy.

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Mr Morrison said any changes to the $1500 a fortnight payment would be “premature” while the economy was only just starting to reopen and with coronavirus “still out there”.

“We still have a long way to go on this and I think it’s quite dangerous to assert that this is all over … we’ve still got a long way to go,” he said.

NOTE: The original version of this story used the “original” ABS data series instead of the “seasonally adjusted” series, which is considered more reliable.