New Zealand’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in the December 2025 quarter, compared with 5.3 percent in the previous quarter, according to figures released by Stats NZ today.

In the December 2025 quarter:

• the unemployment rate was 5.4 percent
• the underutilisation rate was 13.0 percent
• the employment rate was 66.7 percent
• annual wage inflation was 2.0 percent
• average ordinary time hourly earnings were $43.99.

“The unemployment rate was 5.4 percent in the December 2025 quarter, the highest since the September 2015 quarter, when it was 5.7 percent,” macroeconomic spokesperson Jason Attewell said.

“Over the quarter, we saw higher levels of engagement in the labour market as both employment and unemployment increased.”

There were 165,000 unemployed people in the December 2025 quarter, as measured by the Household Labour Force Survey. This was a quarterly increase of 5,000 people (2.9 percent).

More women in the labour force

The seasonally adjusted labour force participation rate was 70.5 percent in the December 2025 quarter, compared with 70.3 percent in the previous quarter. Labour force participation indicates the proportion of working-age people who are engaged in the labour market through either employment or unemployment.

The labour force increased by 19,000 over the quarter, as the working-age population rose by 14,000 and the number of people not in the labour force declined by 6,000.

Compared with the September 2025 quarter, 20,000 more women were in the labour force – 16,000 more employed and 4,000 more unemployed.

While the number of men employed remained relatively steady, the growth in female employment drove a 15,000 increase in the total number of people employed in the December 2025 quarter. Nationally, this was the first quarterly increase in employment since the June 2024 quarter.

Annually, the increase in the number of women employed was not statistically significant, but there were some changes to the occupations in which women were employed (not seasonally adjusted).

The number of women employed as managers increased by 25,000 (9.7 percent) in the year to the December 2025 quarter, and the number employed as professionals increased by 20,500 (5.0 percent). Simultaneously, the number of female clerical and administrative workers declined by 19,600 (9.3 percent).

For men, there were no statistically significant changes in employment by occupation in the year to the December 2025 quarter.

Half of people employed are managers or professionals

“Managers and professionals are the two most common occupation groups for both men and women in New Zealand, each with over 700,000 people employed. These two occupations make up approximately half of the employed population,” Attewell said.

“Within the professional occupation group, you have roles like teachers, nurses, engineers and marketing professionals, while the manager group includes roles like chief executives, retail managers, and farmers.”

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