The national jobless rate held at 3.5 per cent, with 14,600 jobs disappearing from the economy.

“With employment decreasing by around 15,000 people, and the number of unemployed increasing by 6000 people, the unemployment rate remained steady at 3.5 per cent,” Australian Bureau of Statistics head of labour statistics Lauren Ford said.

The participation rate fell 0.2 percentage points to 66.6 per cent for the month of December, back to where it was in October.

“Despite this slight fall from its historic high, it finished the year 0.8 percentage points higher than its pre-pandemic level,” Ms Ford said.

A COVID wave in the final months of 2022 likely contributed to the uptick in people working fewer hours due to illness.

Ms Ford said the 606,000 people working less due to sickness, an extra 86,000, was over 50 per cent higher than usual for that time of year.

The 0.1 per cent fall in employment followed a robust 58,000 lift in November and average monthly growth of around 40,000 people between August and November.

The number of hours worked in the month also dropped by 0.5 per cent for the second month in a row.

“The falls in employment and hours worked in December followed strong growth through 2022, with an annual employment growth rate of 3.4 per cent and hours worked increasing by 3.2 per cent,” Ms Ford said.

“The strong employment growth through 2022, along with high participation and low unemployment, continues to reflect a tight labour market.”

The unemployment rate has hovered around half-century lows for months and another strong report was expected in the final month of 2022.

In November, the unemployment rate was revised from 3.4 per cent to 3.5 per cent, while the participation rate increased to 66.8 per cent.

For the Reserve Bank, another strong labour market read will keep pressure on wages and price growth.

The central bank started hiking interest rates in May in response to surging inflation.

The monthly consumer price index revealed re-accelerating inflation in November, with the indicator lifting 7.3 per cent over 12 months compared to the softer 6.9 per cent annual result in October.

Another cash rate hike is broadly expected when the RBA holds its first meeting of the year in February.

– AAP