Work and unemployment linked to Australia’s suicide crisis

Researchers are calling for a fundamental shift in Australia’s approach to suicide prevention, urging authorities to prioritise the social and economic drivers of distress – such as unemployment, financial insecurity, and workplace conditions – rather than focusing solely on clinical interventions.

Content warning: This article mentions self-harm and suicide.

This comes following a statistic from Suicide Prevention Australia, in which it was found that more than 3,307 Australians died by suicide in 2024.

Accordingly, Adelaide University researchers have called for a change in how suicide is prevented, with work, unemployment, and financial insecurity being recognised as significant aspects in Australia’s suicide prevention response.

The two-year project, “Work and Unemployment: Vital to Effective Suicide Prevention”, was funded by the Medical Research Future Fund.

It examined how government policy, employers, and healthcare systems can collaborate to reduce suicide risk.

In their final report, researchers said Australia cannot significantly reduce suicide rates without addressing the social and economic conditions that place people at risk, including unemployment, financial hardship, insecure work, income instability, and workplace distress.

Highlighting the necessity of this shift, lead investigator Associate Professor Toby Freeman underscored the often-ignored connection between labour and mental health: “Work and unemployment are among the most important social determinants of suicide, yet they remain largely overlooked in suicide prevention.”

“Unemployment has been overlooked perhaps because of the stigmatisation of people who are unemployed by successive governments, and the desire to be seen to be tough on welfare.”

As recently reported, psychosocial hazards are an increasingly alarming HR issue.

Reinforcing this notion, Freeman said: “Workplace factors such as job insecurity, psychosocial hazards, poor working conditions and power imbalances can contribute to suicidal distress, despite often being overlooked in suicide prevention efforts.”

Based on data from the Australian Institute for Health and Welfare, people on unemployment payments are 2.8 times more likely to die by suicide, and more than 600 unemployed people are dying in Australia each year by taking their own lives.

The project also generated a range of recommendations for governments, employers, suicide prevention organisations, and healthcare providers.

These recommendations emphasised the need to better recognise employment-related risk factors, strengthen collaboration across sectors, enhance support for local suicide prevention networks, and address the broader social determinants of suicide.

Work and unemployment were recognised as critical factors in suicide prevention, and suicide prevention efforts were recommended to be integrated into employment and social security policies.

Workplace factors that contribute to suicidal distress, including job insecurity, psychosocial hazards, poor working conditions, and workplace power imbalances, were recommended to be addressed.

Furthermore, JobSeeker payments were recommended to be raised to a liveable level, and punitive mutual obligations and workfare programs, such as Work for the Dole, were recommended to be replaced with supportive employment services that helped people find meaningful and secure work.

“Increasing the rate to unemployment income support payments has been shown to reduce suicide risk,” Freeman said.

“A more liveable rate provides more opportunities for people to get back on their feet, search for jobs, and find new, meaningful work.”

“It is possible that increasing the rate may have benefits for people who are employed as well, but fear the risk of unemployment, such as those in precarious jobs.”

Reflecting these recommendations, the report emphasised the need to address the broader social and economic conditions that contribute to suicide risk, arguing that a more sincere focus should be given to the impacts of job instability or unemployment.

“Greater attention must be paid to the role that unemployment, insecure work, financial insecurity and social exclusion play in people’s lives,” Freeman said.

“If we are serious about reducing suicide in Australia, we need to move beyond treating distress and place greater emphasis on addressing the conditions that place people at risk in the first place.”

For help, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14. If it is an emergency, call 000. Other numbers can be found here.

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