An unexpected unemployment rate rise puts the RBA odds-on to cut the cash rate – but it’s a headache for Jim Chalmers

A resilient labour market is the jewel in Labor's crown when it comes to its economic record. Is this month's data a blip, or the start of something bigger?

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Hear that? That's the sound of the jobs market creaking, if not cracking.

Australia's unemployment rate unexpectedly jumped to a four-year high of 4.5% in September, up from 4.3% the month before.