Rising employment is more than keeping up with New Zealand's growing population, while unemployment has fallen to 5.4 percent, according to this report.

Key facts

In the September 2014 quarter compared with the June 2014 quarter:

• The number of filled jobs rose 1.0 percent.
• Unadjusted, average ordinary-time hourly earnings rose 1.4 percent.
• Average ordinary-time weekly earnings (for full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs) rose 0.3 percent.

In the September 2014 quarter compared with the September 2013 quarter:

• The number of filled jobs rose 3.0 percent.
• Unadjusted, average ordinary-time hourly earnings rose 2.3 percent.
• Average ordinary-time weekly earnings (by FTE) rose 1.7 percent.