Indonesia sees rise in employment in August 2026

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Statistics Indonesia (BPS) recorded a rise in employment from August 2025 to August 2026, with 1.44 million people absorbed into the job market.

Speaking at a press conference in Jakarta on Thursday, BPS Deputy for Balance Sheets and Statistical Analysis M. Edy Mahmud said this increase aligns with labor force growth over the same period, reaching 155.37 million people, up 1.366 million.

"Of that labor force, 147.99 million people are employed. The number of employed people increased by 1.44 million compared to August 2025," Mahmud said.

The sectors employing the largest share of workers in August 2026 were agriculture (28.20 percent), wholesale and retail trade (17.86 percent), and manufacturing (13.75 percent).

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BPS also recorded the Labor Force Participation Rate (TPAK) stood at 70.33 percent, down 0.26 percentage points compared to August 2025.

"The TPAK in August 2026 was 70.33 percent, lower than the 70.59 percent recorded in August 2025," Mahmud stated.

By gender, TPAK for men was higher than that of women, standing at 84.16 percent compared to 56.37 percent for women.

"However, labor force participation rates for both men and women fell compared to August 2025," he added.

Meanwhile, BPS recorded the unemployment rate in August 2026 slipped by 0.09 percentage points compared to August 2025, with the number of unemployed people dropping by 77,000.

"In August 2026, there were 7.38 million unemployed people, equivalent to an unemployment rate of 4.75 percent. This figure is lower than in August 2025," Mahmud remarked.

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Translator: Arnidhya Nur, Raka Adji
Editor: Fransiska Ninditya
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