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The ABS is modernising its Labour Force Survey from the April 2026 reference period. Over the next five months (April through August), headline releases will be pushed back by one week, and six regular tables will be paused. Normal service resumes with the September reference month release in October 2026.
Specifically, the headline national and state Labour Force release, which we normally see in the third week of the month, will land a week later than usual between now and the August reference month release. The detailed regional release (which carries the Cairns SA4 data) has always sat about a week behind the headline, so during the transition the two will effectively land together. The March 2026 detailed release due Thursday 23 April is the last on the current methodology before the changes kick in.
Six tables will stop being published during the transition: Industry, Occupation, Retrenchment, Reasons worked less than usual hours, Reasons not in the labour force, and Duration of job search. The ABS is rebuilding how these cuts are produced; it isn’t a quality issue. But if you rely on industry-level employment data for Cairns or TNQ for workforce planning, you will need to work from the last pre-transition release or wait until late 2026 when the full suite returns.
For the Conus/CBC Staff Selection Regional Employment Trend series the practical impact on timing is minimal. Our Trend series is built off the detailed regional release, which was always landing a week after the headline anyway; the transition simply brings the national, state, and regional data into alignment on the same day. The core SA4 labour force, employment, participation, and unemployment numbers will keep coming as usual. We will flag any methodology adjustments the ABS publishes as they go.
Worth keeping an eye on April reference month data, due out a week later than normal, as the first release under the modernised approach. If you use any of the paused tables for your own work, the ABS media statement is worth reading in full.
We are proud to have CBC Staff Selection as supporters of the Conus/CBC Staff Selection Trend Employment and Jobseeker data series