While the prime minister has been crowing about a supposed 55,000 jobs created, the Australian Bureau of Statistics labour force release figures have indicated that unemployment has risen by 3.7 percent. The youth unemployment rate rose in October, to 9.2 percent, the highest it has been since late 2021. Economists are predicting a further slow down in the economy, so expect the unemployment figures to get even worse. Wages were given a kick in the guts during the Covid plandemic and it is anyone’s guess how long they will take to recover. Macrobusiness.com.au, my now go-to site for seeing the economic plight of Australia, sums it up: “It is going to be a long and painful road ahead for Australian workers.”