Australia’s job vacancies edged down 2.7% in the three months to August, dropping to 327,200, according to new figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Robert Long, ABS head of labour statistics, said: ‘There were 327,200 job vacancies in August, similar to six months ago. Although job vacancies rose in the three months to May, they fell again in the three months to August.’
He added: ‘Private sector job vacancies drove this quarter’s movement, falling by 3.4 per cent. Public sector vacancies went up by 2.2 per cent which was the fourth increase in a row.’
On an annual basis, vacancies were down by 5,000, or 1.5%, a much smaller fall than a year earlier, the ABS said. Long noted: ‘There were 5,000 fewer job vacancies, a drop of 1.5 per cent, over the year to August 2025. This is a much smaller decrease than the same time last year, when there was a drop of 67,300 vacancies, or 16.9 per cent.’
Labour market slack also ticked higher. ‘The number of unemployed people for each job vacancy rose from 1.9 to 2.0, comparing May 2025 to August 2025. This is the highest level seen since February 2021,’ Long said.
By industry, vacancies fell in 11 of 18 sectors over the quarter, the ABS reported. The steepest declines were in Other services (-19.9%) and Financial and insurance services (-15.0%), while Retail trade (+13.5%) and Wholesale trade (+10.7%) recorded the biggest rises. Compared with a year earlier, nine industries were down. Other services fell 33.0% and is now at its lowest level in five years. Manufacturing posted the strongest annual rise, up 46.0%, though it remains 29.6% below its February 2022 peak.
Vacancies rose in five of the eight states and territories in the quarter to August. The Northern Territory recorded the largest increase (+21.9%), followed by Tasmania (+1.6%). Victoria saw the biggest fall (-8.8%), ahead of the Australian Capital Territory (-6.4%).
Despite the recent easing, ABS data show vacancies remain well above pre-pandemic levels. The seasonally adjusted count averaged around 225,000 in 2019, compared with 327,200 in August 2025.
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.
