Unemployment jumps to 5.7%, an 11-year high, three days before the election
Stats NZ figures show unemployment climbed to 5.7% in the September quarter, up from 5.6% and the highest rate since September 2015, with about 174,000 people out of work and net employment falling by roughly 5,000 jobs. Employment fell 0.1% when economists expected a 0.4% rise, participation slipped to 70.4%, and wage growth stayed near a multi-year low of 2.1% - well behind inflation at 3.7% - while the underutilisation rate held at 13.8%, matching its highest level since 2013. Youth joblessness is a particular concern, with Moody's Analytics warning long-term unemployment risks becoming entrenched, and Northland's regional jobless rate sits at 8.3%. The weak data pushed the kiwi dollar lower and reduced expectations of a Reserve Bank rate hike on December 9, helping the sharemarket rise, landing three days before Saturday's election with political parties clashing over the economic record. Also in this briefing: Firefighters announce nationwide strikes as pay dispute escalates; Four teenagers guilty of manslaughter over Auckland bus stop killing; Māori current affairs show The Hui to end after 11 years following funding loss.
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Unemployment reached five point seven percent, marking its highest rate since September twenty fifteen.
Over twenty-one point five percent of jobseekers have now been looking for work over a year.
Professional firefighters scheduled four nationwide ten-hour walkouts beginning November twenty-seventh over pay and equipment.
Four teenagers were convicted of manslaughter rather than murder for a fatal Auckland machete robbery.
Māori investigative current affairs show The Hui is ending after eleven seasons following lost funding.
- 01Intro1 min
- 02Unemployment jumps to 5.7%, an 11-year high, three days before the election: The headline numbers2 min
- 03Unemployment jumps to 5.7%, an 11-year high, three days before the election: Economic and political fallout1 min
- 04Firefighters announce nationwide strikes as pay dispute escalates1 min
- 05Four teenagers guilty of manslaughter over Auckland bus stop killing1 min
- 06Where things stand1 min
- 07Māori current affairs show The Hui to end after 11 years following funding loss1 min
- 08Outro1 min
- New Zealand Unemployment Rises to 5.7%
- Unemployment rises to 5.7% but the problem isn’t just how many, but how long | The Spinoff
- NZ Unemployment Rate Forecast September 2026 Quarter
- New Zealand unemployment hits 11-year high at 5.7% as employment weakens
- NZ’s jobless rate rises to 5.7% - the highest for more than a decade
- BNZ Research - BNZ
- Mercury appoints Summerset CEO Scott Scoullar to board
- 'We expect the peak in unemployment is still ahead' - Kiwibank economists
- Economic and event calendar in Asia Wednesday, November 4, 2026 - NZ jobs report, China PMI
- New Zealand Dollar gives up Iran-talks gain following RBNZ hold
- FENZ Big Strike Planned For 10 Hours
- ‘A necessary evil’: Dunedin firefighters prepare for extended strikes after negotiations fail again
- NZ fire strike vote raises property risk as wildfire season nears
- Firefighter pay offer falls below non-union rate as strike ballot looms
- Fire and emergency warns 10 hour firefighter strikes will put communities at extreme risk
- Four Teens Found Guilty of Manslaughter in Auckland Killing of Kyle…
- St Johns homicide: ‘Significant development’ as Police lay second murder charge | New Zealand Police
- American PhD student fatally attacked at Auckland bus stop identified
- Dad speaks of anger grief over shock death of kyle whorrall
- Bus stop attack: US student left with 'catastrophic and ultimately fatal wound'
- Auckland Court: Judge orders jurors to ignore emotions in Whorrall trial | Viral Newz Daily
- Judge directs jury to separate defendants in Whorrall trial | Palm Harbor Herald
- The mute button is going on the hui s boss on show s closure and what nz is really losing
- News Briefing: 5 November 2026
- What is going on with Māori media? | The Spinoff
- Te Karere funding slashed, no pūtea for The Hui in latest funding round
- I am gutted i am sad for nz tv funding shake up long running current affairs show to end
- aut.ac.nz
- Budget boost softens blow for Te Māngai Pāho, but funding pressures remain • Te Māngai Pāho
- Te Māngai Pāho grateful despite losing millions in funding | Tahu FM
- New details emerge of Te Māngai Pāho’s vision for Māori news | The Spinoff
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