Employment confidence has slipped, as the reality of the slow recovery sets in.
The Westpac McDermott Miller employment confidence index for the three months to September has fallen almost six points, to 102.6.
A reading above 100 indicates there are more optimists than pessimists.
A net 61% of respondents believe jobs are hard to get, up from 46% in June.
However, 21% say they are earning more than last year, up from 19%the previous quarter.
Westpac senior economist Donna Purdue says that after showing signs of resilience earlier this year, employees have lost some faith in the economic recovery.
