Westpac-McDermott Miller Employment Confidence Index sinks to new low amid Middle East conflict

Posted by Andrew on June 22, 2026

Employment confidence fell to its lowest level ever in June amid concerns around the Middle East conflict, according to the latest Westpac-McDermott Miller Employment Confidence Index.

The index dropped 12.5 points to 83.1 in the June quarter, the lowest reading for the survey since it began in September 2004.

“The loss of confidence was shared across all of the survey measures, and was seen across most regions, ages and income groups,” Westpac senior economist Michael Gordon said.

A net 60% of respondents felt that it is hard to find a job at the moment, compared to a net 46% in the previous survey.

“This points to some renewed softness in the jobs data in the months ahead, after signs that the unemployment rate had passed its peak in the March quarter,” Gordon said.

“That’s not to dismiss the results of this survey, but it highlights that events in the Middle East are evolving rapidly and it remains highly uncertain what their lasting impact on the New Zealand economy will be.”

Workers’ perceptions of their own job security fell sharply, down 15.2 points to minus 9.6 – the lowest level since the Covid lockdown.

 

Imogen Rendall, market research director of McDermott Miller Limited, said confidence amongst employees in both the private and public sectors was firmly pessimistic for the quarter.

“Private sector employees’ confidence has dropped 13.1 points this quarter to 82.5, while public sector employees’ has experienced an even bigger drop of 17.5 points to 86.0,” she said.

“Both private and public sector employees continue to be particularly concerned about the current job market.

“They are also taking an increasingly pessimistic view of future job opportunities over the coming year, with almost half of those in the public sector and almost four in ten in the private sector saying that jobs will be harder to get.”
 

Last week, the Westpac McDermott Miller Consumer Confidence Index sank to its lowest level since 2023, dropping 14.3 points in the June quarter to 80.4.

Thanks to the NZ Herald for this story.