For a newly returned government a rise in the unemployment rate was not a good look.
But Employment Minister Michaelia Cash believes the fact that more people were added to the workforce in June to a record high is a sign of resilience in the Australian economy at a time of significant uncertainty in the global economy.
"Almost 12 million Australians are in jobs and that is very good news," Senator Cash told reporters in Perth on Thursday.
Total employment grew by just 7900 in June, but as a result of a 34,800 jump in full-time employment being pared back by a fall in part-time workers.
Senator Cash said the government is not about to rest on its laurels.
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"That is why every policy we took to the election was very much a policy that was based on how do we stimulate business to create jobs," she said.
The rise in unemployment rate was the first increase this year and follows three months of stability at 5.7 per cent.
Labor's employment spokesman Brendan O'Connor viewed the jobs result cautiously given a change of sampling undertaken by the Australian Bureau of Statistics and will wait to see the July figures to establish a trend.
Even so, he couldn't believe there was a near 35,000 spike in full-time workers during an election campaign.
"I have to say that beggars belief," he told reporters in Canberra.
He also said unemployment remains stubbornly high compared with the 5.1 per cent average under the previous Labor government even when it was dealing with the global financial crisis.
He said the Turnbull government's jobs and growth slogan was nothing but a cliche.
"Underneath that slogan there is literally nothing," Mr O'Connor told reporters in Canberra.
South Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young, who saw the jobless rate in her own state rise to seven per cent and the highest in the country, was equally unimpressed.
"We have a prime minister who talks about jobs and growth but the only growth I've seen today is the growth in the unemployment," she told Sky News.
Economists expect inflation remains the key driver for Reserve Bank decisions on interest rates with the focus now on the official June quarter reading on July 27.
"We expect that persistent weakness in inflation combined with a slightly softer labour market will push the RBA over the line for another rate cut in August," ANZ head of economics Felicity Emmett said.
A reduction at the central bank's August 2 board meeting would take the cash rate to just 1.5 per cent from an already record low of 1.75 per cent.
