The latest rise in the unemployment rate may not tell the full story

Figures from Stats NZ show 4.8 percent of the labour force was out of work in the September quarter, up from 4.6 three months in the June quarter.

Most economists expected unemployment to hit five-percent.

But JMI Wealth Director Andrew Kelleher says we've instead seen more people leaving the labour force entirely.

He says it highlights a 'discouraged worker effect' where people give up, and choose not to work.