Filled jobs for youth aged 15 to 19 years lifted strongly over the last year, Stats NZ said today.
Filled jobs for this age group rose to 131,000 in the June 2022 quarter, up 18 percent when compared with the June 2021 quarter.
“Youth appear to be taking up job opportunities in a stretched labour market,” business employment insights manager Sue Chapman said.
“There was significant growth in filled jobs for 15 to 19-year-olds across many industries over the last year, with the largest numerical increases being in retail and hospitality.”
As filled jobs have increased, total gross earnings for youth aged 15 to 19 years have also lifted significantly. Combined gross earnings for this age group for the June 2022 quarter were $841 million, up 26 percent compared with the June 2021 quarter. Earnings for those aged 15 to 19 years made up 2.2 percent of total gross earnings in the June 2022 quarter, while the group held 6.0 percent of total filled jobs.
These statistics use PAYE (pay as you earn) tax data to estimate filled job numbers and gross earnings.
“Filled jobs will include those employed on a part-time or casual basis, so job holders in younger age groups could also be attending school or undertaking tertiary study,” Ms Chapman said.
Filled job numbers for younger age groups were heavily impacted at the onset of the COVID pandemic in 2020. Filled jobs for 15 to 19-year-olds were 8.5 percent lower in the June 2020 quarter than in the June 2019 quarter.
| June quarter | Percent change |
| 2015 | 1.5 |
| 2016 | 1.4 |
| 2017 | 5.9 |
| 2018 | 4.2 |
| 2019 | 2.9 |
| 2020 | -8.5 |
| 2021 | 6.0 |
| 2022 | 17.6 |
Most age groups saw increases in filled jobs in the June 2022 quarter when compared with the June 2021 quarter. In percentage terms, the next largest rises were in the older age groups, with 60 to 64-year-olds increasing 4.6 percent, and those aged 65 and over increasing 8.3 percent. The largest fall was in the 25 to 29-year age group, down 7,500 filled jobs (2.8 percent).
Total filled jobs rose in June quarter
At the total level, when adjusted for seasonal factors, filled jobs were up 0.5 percent in the June 2022 quarter when compared with the March 2022 quarter. This follows an unchanged March 2022 quarter.
| Quarter | Percentage change |
| Jun-16 | 0.9 |
| Sep-16 | 0.9 |
| Dec-16 | 0.7 |
| Mar-17 | 0.5 |
| Jun-17 | 1.4 |
| Sep-17 | 0.9 |
| Dec-17 | 0.5 |
| Mar-18 | 0.6 |
| Jun-18 | 0.4 |
| Sep-18 | 0.2 |
| Dec-18 | 0.8 |
| Mar-19 | 0.7 |
| Jun-19 | 0.7 |
| Sep-19 | 0.5 |
| Dec-19 | 0.8 |
| Mar-20 | 0.3 |
| Jun-20 | -0.6 |
| Sep-20 | -0.2 |
| Dec-20 | -0.3 |
| Mar-21 | 0.5 |
| Jun-21 | 1.1 |
| Sep-21 | 1.5 |
| Dec-21 | 0.7 |
| Mar-22 | 0 |
| Jun-22 | 0.5 |
Seasonally adjusted filled jobs by industry and region are also available.
See Business employment data: June 2022 quarter for further information.
Total earnings continued to rise strongly
For total gross earnings, comparisons are on an annual basis to account for payroll timings.
Gross earnings for the year ended June 2022 were $149 billion, up $12.6 billion (9.2 percent) compared with the year ended June 2021. Gross earnings rose 5.2 percent in the previous year.
