Formal employment (measured via a sample of private and public enterprises) declined by -0.7% q/q in Q1 2025, with employment falling by -74 000 jobs to 10.58 million from 10.65 million in Q4 2023.

On an annual basis, -95 000 jobs were lost in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024, translating to a -0.9% y/y decline.

Job losses in no less than five of the eight surveyed industries contributed to the overall decline in formal employment in Q1. Employment in the ‘trade’ and ‘electricity’  industries both fell by -1.6% q/q, followed by a -0.9% q/q decrease in ‘mining’.

Moreover, ‘manufacturing’ and ‘transport’ employment reported zero growth from Q4 2024 to Q1 2025. As such, ‘construction’ was the only industry reporting an improvement, with a +0.9% q/q increase in employment.

More positively, the latest QES indicates that strong earnings growth continued in early 2025. Average monthly earnings grew by +5.6% y/y in Q1 (+5.3% y/y in Q4 2024), translating into roughly +2.8 y/y growth in inflation-adjusted prices. Of course, the caveat being that these are higher earnings by a smaller pool of employed.