Treasurer Jim Chalmers says 2023 will be "an uncertain year" as he claims the jobs growth that took place during Labor's first six months in power put it into the record books.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The latest jobs data compiled by the Australia Bureau of Statistics show 234,000 more Australians were employed in November last year from when Labor took power in May, a 1.7 per cent jump in employment.
Employment booms were seen in industries including construction (8.4 per cent), retail trade (3.1 per cent) and accommodation and food services (4.4 per cent) over that May-November period.
But the government would still need to do more to ensure that more Australians were benefiting from a growing economy, Mr Chalmers said.
"With growing global pressures set to impact us more in 2023, having more Australians in good jobs is one of our best defences," he said.
"Even with all these headwinds, this level of jobs growth is history-making and world-beating."
Citing Treasury's comparisons of the data against historical records and global leaders, Mr Chalmers said it was the strongest growth in employment for the first six months of any government since before 1972.
G7 countries' employment growth trailed behind Australia's 1.7 per cent over that period, ranging from the United States with 1.26 per cent growth through to the UK employment going backwards with -0.27 per cent growth.
The Treasurer said the government was "optimistic" about the future of the Australian economy even as it was being realistic about the challenges ahead this year.
"While unemployment remains low, there's plenty more we can still do, and will do, to make sure people can benefit from a growing economy."
READ MORE ECONOMICS NEWS:
Last week Prime Minister Anthony Albanese flagged up to 8000 workers a year could be coming to Australia from Papua New Guinea by 2025 to fill vacant jobs.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures last week reported 444,200 job vacancies in the three months to November - virtually double the pre-pandemic number - and almost 28 per cent of employers had positions to fill.
The national unemployment rate fell to 3.4 per cent late in November last year, where it remains.
The December labour force report will be released on Thursday.
Labor has also faced a barrage of criticism over rising cost of living and household expenses, especially soaring energy prices. During the election Anthony Albanese promised that his power policy would reduce household energy bills by $275 by 2025, which the Coalition has attacked as a broken promise.
The Coalition also attacked Labor's industrial relations laws passed last year as a threat to jobs growth.
Harley Dennett
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
