The unemployment rate rose to 5.7 per cent in the December 2014 quarter, at the same time the labour force participation rate reached a record 69.7 per cent in figures released by Statistics New Zealand today.
Labour market and households statistics manager Diane Ramsay said employment couldn't keep up with the record number of people entering the labour force.
"So even though employment growth was also strong over the quarter, the unemployment rate increased," she said.
Annually, the number of people employed rose 3.5 per cent in the Household Labour Force Survey.
Statistic NZ said employment growth in Canterbury had eased in the year to the December 2014 quarter compared with previous quarters.
The number of jobs filled rose 2.5 per cent according to the Quarterly Employment Survey.
Annual wage inflation increased 1.8 per cent, compared with annual consumer price inflation of 0.8 percent.
