Key highlights

  • In original terms in September 2026, the median unemployment rate across SA4 regions was 4.4%, with rates ranging from 2.6% to 6.8%.
  • Participation rates across SA4 regions ranged from 51.1% to 75.6%.
  • The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released Regional Labour Force for the first time on 22 October 2026, with modelled estimates from January 2012 and monthly releases to follow.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has released the first issue of a new monthly publication, Regional Labour Force, providing modelled estimates of employment and unemployment for regions across Australia. The release, published at 11:30am AEDT on 22 October 2026 for the reference period of September 2026, covers Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) regions.

According to the ABS, in original terms in September 2026 the median unemployment rate across SA4 regions was 4.4%, and the range of unemployment rates across SA4 regions was 2.6% to 6.8%. The range of participation rates across SA4 regions was 51.1% to 75.6%.

Key statistics for September 2026

The ABS reported three headline measures for the month, all in original terms. The median unemployment rate across SA4 regions was 4.4%. Unemployment rates across the regions ranged from 2.6% at the lowest to 6.8% at the highest, a spread of 4.2 percentage points between the regions with the lowest and highest rates.

Participation rates, which measure the proportion of the population that is in the labour force, ranged from 51.1% to 75.6% across SA4 regions, a spread of 24.5 percentage points. The ABS said the release provides modelled original labour force estimates for SA4 regions from January 2012 onwards, which gives the series a history of more than a decade.

What the new release covers

The ABS said estimates are available for six measures: employment, unemployment, not in the labour force (NILF), the unemployment rate, the participation rate and the employment-to-population ratio. These are the standard measures used to describe labour force status, and the regional release applies them at SA4 level rather than only at the national and state level.

The release includes maps of unemployment rates by region for Australia as a whole and for each state and territory: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. On the maps, darker shades indicate higher unemployment rates. The data downloads include a pivot table of modelled estimates of labour force status by SA4, age and sex, and a table shell for estimates by Statistical Area Level 3 (SA3).

How the estimates are produced

The ABS said the estimates are modelled and are produced using small area estimation methods that combine information from the Labour Force Survey with administrative data sources. Modelled estimates of this kind are used where the survey sample in a small region is too limited to produce reliable direct estimates on its own.

The release notes two treatments that differ from the general approach. Data for the Australian Capital Territory are the direct survey estimates, although the ABS also noted that the data for the territory has been modelled at the age group and sex level and calibrated to the territory total from the direct survey estimates. In Western Australia, the regions Western Australia – Outback (North) and Western Australia – Outback (South) are modelled as a combined SA4.

Release schedule and what comes next

The ABS said Regional Labour Force will be released monthly, one week after the Labour Force, Australia release. The ABS also expects to introduce modelled Statistical Area 3 (SA3) estimates in November 2026, which would provide a finer level of regional detail than the SA4 estimates in this first issue. The release lists the date of the next release as unknown.

Alongside the release, the ABS published an article on the complete history of regional labour force statistics, and lists the Labour Force, Australia methodology for September 2026 as its methodology reference.

Reading the regional figures

The September 2026 figures show how much labour market conditions can differ between regions even when a national figure is stable. A median of 4.4% sits within a range of 2.6% to 6.8%, which means some regions recorded rates well below and others well above the middle of the distribution. The ABS did not identify the regions at either end of the range in the key statistics, and the figures are modelled estimates in original, rather than seasonally adjusted, terms.

Because the series begins in January 2012, the modelled estimates allow comparisons across time for individual SA4 regions. The first issue provides the September 2026 position and the historical series, with later monthly releases adding further observations.