Australia’s shift work economy tightens as businesses cut hours for a second consecutive month
Deputy’s September Hourly Work Index finds employers reducing worker hours as operating costs continue to put pressure on frontline industries.
SYDNEY, Australia, 12 October 2026, — Australia’s hourly-work economy contracted for a second consecutive month in September, with businesses across hospitality, retail and services reducing the hours available to workers as cost pressures continue to reshape frontline industries.
Deputy’s September 2026 Hourly Work Index found total hours worked across healthcare, hospitality, retail and services fell 1.3% in September, following a 2.7% decline in August. It breaks the alternating pattern of monthly gains and falls seen earlier this year, marking the first back-to-back monthly decline since Deputy began tracking the Index in January.
The reduction matters because workers in these industries are already working well below a comparable full-time workload of around 164 hours per month. In September, average monthly hours per employee ranged from 63 to 67 hours across the four sectors.
This pressure is likely driving the continued rise in poly-employment reported by the ABS. As fewer hours are available in a worker’s main job, more Australians are taking on additional work to supplement lost income. ABS data shows 6.9% of employed Australians now hold multiple jobs, with workers aged 20 to 24 the most likely to do so.
Hospitality experienced the sharpest pullback, with hours per employee down 3.2% and shifts per employee down 3.0%. Retail hours per employee fell 1.9%, while services fell 1.0%. Healthcare was the only sector to record an increase, with hours per employee up 2.1%.
The figures may be an early indication that businesses are scrutinising labour spend more closely as they manage the bottom line in a financially challenging operating environment, including the growing costs of wages, rent, supplies and keeping the doors open.
Against this backdrop, one measure is moving in the right direction: roster certainty. Workers received an average of 8.5 days’ notice before a shift in September, the highest level recorded this year and up from 5.7 days in January.
But that certainty is not reaching all workers equally.
Baby Boomers received 11.3 days’ notice on average, compared with 7.9 days for Gen Z workers. The 3.4-day gap has widened from 2.6 days in August, despite every generation receiving more notice than the previous month. Gen Z received the least notice of any adult generation in healthcare, hospitality and services.
Deputy’s Chief Financial Officer Emma Seymour said the Index reflects the difficult balancing act facing businesses and their workforces.
“Rosters are being finalised earlier than at any other point this year, with workers receiving an average of 8.5 days’ notice in September, up from 5.7 days in January. But that certainty is not being shared evenly. Baby Boomers received 11.3 days’ notice on average, compared with 7.9 days for Gen Z workers.That matters because Gen Z are the generation most likely to be juggling multiple jobs, often with the least financial buffer. When someone is coordinating two or three rosters to make rent, advance notice is not simply convenient. It is what allows them to make the week work. Giving younger workers greater certainty does not add to a business’s wage bill. It is one of the simplest, most practical ways to support retention.”
The sector data points to a mixed outlook heading into the final quarter of the year. Retail recorded its strongest hiring month of the year, with new hires increasing 9.4%, potentially signalling an early workforce build for Christmas trading. Yet those additional workers are being offered fewer average hours. Healthcare saw both hours increase and turnover rise sharply, with terminations up 43.1%.
The Index also shows that predictability is highly dependent on industry. Healthcare workers received 14.3 days’ notice on average, compared with 9.8 days in retail, 8.5 days in services and 6.7 days in hospitality.
Deputy’s Hourly Work Index analyses anonymised and aggregated workforce data across healthcare, hospitality, retail and services to track conditions in Australia’s shift work economy.
About the Australian Hourly Work Index
Deputy’s Australian Hourly Work Index is a monthly view of hourly work across healthcare, hospitality, retail and services. It uses anonymised and aggregated customer and user data from Deputy’s world of work and industry insights platform. Results are statistically normalised to account for seasonality and natural weekly workforce-demand fluctuations.
About Deputy
Deputy is the intuitive, people platform built specifically for shift work. Trusted by over 1.5 million shift workers and 390,000 workplaces in more than 100 countries, Deputy brings together AI-powered scheduling, compliance automation, accurate payroll and mobile-first communication to help businesses run more efficiently and teams feel empowered. Discover more at www.deputy.com
