The first fall in the number of people with jobs in five months won't be enough to convince the Reserve Bank to cut interest rates, economists say.
The jobless rate was steady at 6.2 per cent in September, but the number of people with jobs fell by an unexpectedly large 5,100.
JP Morgan economist Ben Jarman said the fall is likely to be temporary, and follows four consecutive months of solid employment growth.
"Broadly, the story of a stronger-than-expected labour market is still playing out," he said.
"Six months ago people were fairly certain that unemployment was on an upward track to 6.5 per cent, but it just keeps hanging in the low sixes."
Annual employment growth is tracking at two per cent, and improved business confidence and weaker population growth should keep a lid on the unemployment rate, Mr Jarman said.
"Looking at that alone you can see why the Reserve Bank has been willing to stay on the sidelines for the past few months," he said.
ANZ economists, who are forecasting two RBA rate cuts in the first half of 2016, also expect the unemployment rate to remain around 6.25 per cent for an extended period.
However, they believe the rate of jobs growth may slow due to soft economic conditions.
"The significant support to jobs growth from the labour intensive services sector is expected to wane amid less support from housing activity and the lower currency," they said in a research note.
AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver tips unemployment will rise slowly as economic growth remains subdued at around two per cent per year.
"Higher mortgage rates flowing through to owner occupiers and dampening spending power will only add to the risks of rising unemployment," he said, referring to Westpac's mortgage rate hike on Wednesday.
That move is expected to be followed by the other major lenders, which some economists have said will make the case for another RBA rate cut more compelling.
September's unemployment rate remained at 6.2 per cent mainly because the participation rate, or the number of people either employed or actively looking for work, fell slightly to 64.9 per cent.
The former head of the bureau of statistics, Bill McLennan, has blasted the reliability of the jobs data, claiming they aren't worth the paper they're written on.
The ABS changed the way it compiles the data in 2014 after several months of unexplained volatility.
But HSBC economists said the numbers support other job market indicators.
"The official labour market numbers are broadly in line with other surveys, including job advertisements, vacancies and hiring intentions, which have all shown a gradual improvement in labour demand since their trough in early 2014," they said.
CommSec chief economist Craig James said the data also showed a 2.5 per cent rise in hours worked during the past year, the fastest pace of growth in four years.
AAP lhj/dmc/bt
