EmploymentDefinitionThe employment rate is the proportion of the population aged 15–64 years who are employed for at least one hour per week.RelevanceThe employment rate is the best available indicator of the prevalence of paid employment. It is affected by trends in both unemployment and labour force participation (the proportion of the working-age population either employed or unemployed). Current level and trendsIn 2007, 75.4 percent of 15–64 year olds (2.086 million people) were employed. This was an increase from 75.2 percent in 2006 and higher than the rate recorded in 1986 (72.3 percent). The employment rate has been rising since 1992, except during the economic downturn in 1997 and 1998. The increase from 65.4 percent in 1992 to 75.4 percent in 2007 corresponds to a rise of 582,000 in the number of employed people aged 15–64 years. Over the same period, the number of people aged 15–64 years increased by 465,300. The full-time employment rate for 15–64 year olds declined sharply between 1986 (60.4 percent) and 1992 (51.5 percent), and had almost recovered to the mid-1980s level by 2007 (59.0 percent). The part-time employment rate increased throughout the period, from 11.9 percent in 1986 to 16.4 percent in 2007. Although the parttime rate has almost doubled for men since 1986, women continue to have a higher part-time employment rate than men (24.0 percent compared with 8.6 percent in 2007). Figure PW2.1 Employment rate, 1986–2007
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Household Labour Force Survey Age and sex differencesThe fall in the employment rate between 1987 and 1992 affected all age groups but was most pronounced for young people aged 15–24 years. Youth employment rates have remained relatively low during the period of employment growth since 1992, possibly due to a growth in their participation in tertiary education and training. Conversely, employment rates for people aged 45–64 years have grown strongly since 1992, driven mainly by the phasing in of the higher age of eligibility for New Zealand Superannuation, the rise in employment among women, and an increase in the demand for labour. The employment rate for women is significantly lower than that for men. This is mainly because women spend more time on childcare and other unpaid household work, and are more likely than men to undertake some form of study or training. The sex gap in the employment rate is narrowing as female employment grew more rapidly than male employment between 1992 and 2007. Table PW2.1 Employment rates (%), by age and sex, selected years, 1986–2007
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Household Labour Force Survey Ethnic differencesThe employment rates for Māori and Pacific peoples showed the steepest fall between 1987 and 1992, but have also shown the strongest recovery since then. In 2007, the Māori employment rate, at 65.7 percent, had surpassed the 1986 level (61.2 percent). However, Pacific peoples were still less likely to be employed in 2007 (63.2 percent) than in 1986 (68.4 percent). The European ethnic group, with the highest employment rate, has also surpassed the level of the mid-1980s (79.9 percent employed in 2007, compared with 73.8 percent in 1986). The employment rate for the Other ethnic group fell from being the second highest in the late-1980s to being the lowest over recent years. However, in 2007 their employment rate (64.5 percent) was just above that of Pacific peoples. Figure PW2.2 Employment rate, by ethnic group, 1986–2007
Source: Statistics New Zealand, Household Labour Force Survey International comparisonIn 2007, New Zealand was ranked sixth highest of 30 OECD countries with an employment rate of 75.4 percent for people aged 15–64 years. This was well above the OECD average of 66.6 percent. Iceland had the highest employment rate in 2007 (85.7 percent). The New Zealand rate in 2007 was higher than those of Canada (73.6 percent), the United Kingdom (72.3 percent), Australia (72.9 percent) and the United States (71.8 percent). New Zealand had a higher female employment rate than the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia in 2007.57 |
