Post-Census updates
JobSeeker recipients
This page tracks JobSeeker and Youth Allowance (other) recipients for Cardinia (S) at SA2 level. It provides a more current signal of labour-market stress and socio-economic pressure than Census-only views.
Related topics
About this topic
This page tracks JobSeeker and Youth Allowance (other) recipients for Cardinia (S) at SA2 level. It provides a more current signal of labour-market stress and socio-economic pressure than Census-only views.
The current comparison uses January 2026 against June 2023. Rates are calculated against the available ERP 15-64 population for each period.
Key insight
In January 2026, 4,118 people in Cardinia (S) were receiving JobSeeker or Youth Allowance (other), equal to 4.9% of the working-age population, compared with 3,064 (3.7%) in June 2023. Pakenham - South East had the highest current rate and Emerald - Cockatoo (part) the lowest.
4,118
Recipients January 2026
4.9% of 15-64 population
+1,054
Change since June 2023
3.7% to 4.9%
8.3%
Highest SA2 rate
Pakenham - South East
3.3%
Lowest SA2 rate
Emerald - Cockatoo (part)
Chart view
Recipients by SA2
Current rate on the bar, comparison rate as the marker. Sorted by current rate.
Pakenham - South East
8.3%
6.6%
Pakenham - North East
7.1%
5.7%
Pakenham - South West
5.5%
4.0%
Pakenham - North West
5.2%
3.3%
Koo Wee Rup
4.6%
3.5%
Bunyip - Garfield
4.3%
3.6%
Belgrave - Selby (part)
4.2%
3.9%
Beaconsfield - Officer
3.4%
2.5%
Emerald - Cockatoo (part)
3.3%
2.7%
Data table
JobSeeker rates by SA2
Download recipient counts and rates for the current and comparison months.
| SA2 | January 2026 recipients | January 2026 rate | June 2023 recipients | June 2023 rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pakenham - South East | 350 | 8.3% | 280 | 6.6% |
| Pakenham - North East | 760 | 7.1% | 600 | 5.7% |
| Pakenham - South West | 1,005 | 5.5% | 725 | 4.0% |
| Pakenham - North West | 330 | 5.2% | 190 | 3.3% |
| Koo Wee Rup | 345 | 4.6% | 255 | 3.5% |
| Bunyip - Garfield | 275 | 4.3% | 225 | 3.6% |
| Belgrave - Selby (part) | 5 | 4.2% | 4 | 3.9% |
| Beaconsfield - Officer | 655 | 3.4% | 460 | 2.5% |
| Emerald - Cockatoo (part) | 393 | 3.3% | 324 | 2.7% |