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City Compass

Mackay (R)

Post-Census updates

JobSeeker recipients

This page tracks JobSeeker and Youth Allowance (other) recipients for Mackay (R) at SA2 level. It provides a more current signal of labour-market stress and socio-economic pressure than Census-only views.

About this topic

This page tracks JobSeeker and Youth Allowance (other) recipients for Mackay (R) 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, 4,695 people in Mackay (R) were receiving JobSeeker or Youth Allowance (other), equal to 5.7% of the working-age population, compared with 4,410 (5.4%) in June 2023. Mackay had the highest current rate and Eungella Hinterland the lowest.

4,695

Recipients January 2026

5.7% of 15-64 population

+285

Change since June 2023

5.4% to 5.7%

18.6%

Highest SA2 rate

Mackay

0.0%

Lowest SA2 rate

Eungella Hinterland

Chart view

Recipients by SA2

Current rate on the bar, comparison rate as the marker. Sorted by current rate.

Mackay (R):5.7%
Rest of Qld:7.1%
Queensland:6.2%

Mackay

18.6%

16.8%

North Mackay

9.5%

9.0%

Slade Point

8.3%

8.6%

South Mackay

7.3%

7.4%

Sarina

6.6%

6.0%

West Mackay

5.9%

5.7%

Andergrove - Beaconsfield

5.8%

5.4%

Seaforth - Calen

5.6%

5.3%

East Mackay

5.2%

5.7%

Shoal Point - Bucasia

5.1%

4.3%

Mackay Harbour

4.4%

3.3%

Eimeo - Rural View

3.8%

3.5%

Ooralea - Bakers Creek

3.7%

3.7%

Walkerston - Eton

3.6%

3.4%

Pioneer Valley

3.5%

3.7%

Mount Pleasant - Glenella

3.0%

2.6%

Eungella Hinterland

0.0%

83.3%

Comparison rateCurrent LGA rateHigher-than-LGA SA2s shown in accent

Data table

JobSeeker rates by SA2

Download recipient counts and rates for the current and comparison months.

SA2January 2026 recipientsJanuary 2026 rateJune 2023 recipientsJune 2023 rate
Mackay56018.6%51016.8%
North Mackay3909.5%3709.0%
Slade Point1908.3%2008.6%
South Mackay3357.3%3357.4%
Sarina5106.6%4606.0%
West Mackay2455.9%2305.7%
Andergrove - Beaconsfield6155.8%5755.4%
Seaforth - Calen3005.6%2855.3%
East Mackay1305.2%1405.7%
Shoal Point - Bucasia2205.1%1854.3%
Mackay Harbour204.4%153.3%
Eimeo - Rural View3853.8%3403.5%
Ooralea - Bakers Creek1603.7%1553.7%
Walkerston - Eton2003.6%1903.4%
Pioneer Valley2103.5%2203.7%
Mount Pleasant - Glenella2253.0%1952.6%
Eungella Hinterland00.0%583.3%
Source: Department of Social Services, data.gov.au. Rates use ERP 15-64 population denominators. Compiled by Geografia.