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National

New 2011 Census data reveals more about Australia

30 October 2012 | CO/65

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Labour force
New data from the 2011 Census released today: Industry
New data from the 2011 Census released today: Occupation
New data from the 2011 Census released today: Method of travel to work
New data from the 2011 Census released today: Education
New data from the 2011 Census released today: State and territory migration
New data from the 2011 Census released today: Mining

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Labour force

30 October 2012

New data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today has added to the picture of Australia’s labour force.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said the latest release of 2011 Census data marked an important time for the ABS and Australia.

“2011 Census data released earlier this year has already shed some light on who we are, and where we live,” Mr Henderson said.

“The latest tranche of Census data now shows us a snapshot of what we do and how we live, helping to further shape the future of our country over the next five years, and providing a brighter future for all Australians.”

The latest figures show Australia’s total labour force of people aged 15 years and over consisted of 10,658,458 people at the time of the last Census on 9 August 2011, an increase of 1,050,471 people from 9,607,987 in 2006.

More than half (59.7 per cent) of Australia’s labour force reported being employed full-time. Of this, 63.9 per cent were male. Comparatively, of the 28.7 per cent of Australia’s labour force who reported being employed part-time, 67.9 per cent were female.

One-third (33 per cent) of the population aged 15 years and over reported they were not in the labour force. Those who reported they were not in the labour force include retirees, students, and stay at home parents.

There has also been a decline in the proportion of people who reported working 40 hours or more the week before Census, from 47.2 per cent in 2006, to 45.3 per cent in 2011, a decrease of 1.9 percentage points.

Mr Henderson encouraged everyone to make use of Australia’s richest statistical resource, which provides a comprehensive snapshot of the nation and all areas within it.

“Census data is available free online and can be used for a wide range of purposes. Our range of new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, makes searching Census data quick and easy,” he said.

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Industry

30 October 2012

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today released the second round of results from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing.

The latest data has revealed a shift in Australia’s primary employment industry.

More Australians reported being employed in the Health Care and Social Assistance industry than ever before, with the Health Care and Social Assistance industry now accounting for 11.6 per cent of Australia’s employment, an increase of 1.1 percentage points since 2006.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said it was interesting to see the shift from Retail Trade and Manufacturing to Health Care and Social Assistance.

“It’s interesting to see the decline in the proportion of people reporting employment in Australia’s traditional Manufacturing and Retail Trade industries, while the Health Care and Social Assistance is now Australia’s number one industry of employment.

“People who work in the Health Care and Social Assistance industry include our doctors, nurses, dentists, physiotherapists, child care workers and aged care providers,” Mr Henderson said.

In 2006, Retail Trade was the primary employment industry in Australia, and figures now show it is the second most reported industry of employment, accounting for 10.5 per cent in 2011, a decrease of 0.8 of a percentage point since 2006. This reflects a slower growth rate in the Retail Trade industry, with an increase in the number of people employed (24,117 persons) over the period.

Mr Henderson also said that Australia’s Mining industry has recorded the highest growth since the 2006 Census.

“Not surprisingly, the results have shown a 65.2 per cent, or 69,667 people, increase in the proportion of people who reported mining as their industry of employment,” Mr Henderson said.

Mining now accounts for 1.8 per cent of Australia’s employment, an increase from 1.2 per cent in 2006.

Mr Henderson encouraged everyone to make use of Australia’s richest statistical resource, which provides a comprehensive snapshot of the nation and all areas within it.

“Census data is available free online and can be used for a wide range of purposes. Our range of new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, makes searching Census data quick and easy,” he said.

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Occupation

30 October 2012

Australia’s unskilled workforce is on the decline according to the latest 2011 Census of Population and Housing figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said the latest data shows a shift in the state of Australia’s work force.

“Census data provides a valuable insight into growth and development of Australia, our people and our workforce,” Mr Henderson said.

Labourers now account for 9.4 per cent of Australia’s labour force, a 1.1 percentage point decrease since the last Census. In 2006, Labourers were reported in the top five most common occupations in Australia, accounting for 10.5 per cent, but they are now sitting in sixth position.

People who reported their occupation as Labourer in the Census included cleaners and laundry workers, construction and mining workers, factory process workers, farm and forestry workers as well as freight handlers and food preparation assistants.

Professionals are still the most commonly reported occupations in Australia, accounting for 21.3 per cent of the labour force. Professionals include arts and media, business and human resources, sales, marketing and public relations, design and engineering, science and transport professionals.

Clerical and Administrative Workers (14.7 per cent), Technicians and Trade Workers (14.2 per cent) and Managers (12.9 per cent) were the next most commonly reported occupations, consecutively.

Of the top five most common occupations, Community and Personal Service Workers saw the second largest increase (0.9 percentage point) in the proportion of people reporting an occupation in this field, and now accounts for 9.7 per cent of Australia’s labour force. Community and Personal Service Workers include health and welfare support workers, carers and aides, hospitality workers, protective service workers and sports and personal services workers.

Mr Henderson added that the latest release of Census data will inform future planning for vital services in communities across Australia.

“Census data is used to allocate government funding for all areas of Australia, and to plan vital services and infrastructure that we all use in our communities every day.

“Census data is available for free on the ABS website, where you can find new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, that make searching Census data quick and easy,” Mr Henderson said.

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Method of travel to work

30 October 2012

The second round of results from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing, released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today, revealed that Australians still prefer to travel to work by car than any other means.

Figures show that 60.2 per cent of people reported they drive to work, and a further 5.3 per cent travel as a passenger in the car.

However, Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said the results do show a shift in the preferred methods of travel to work for some Australians.

“While the household car is still the preferred method of travel to work for most Australians, the train has overtaken walking as one of the most preferred modes of transport,” Mr Henderson said.

“The proportion of people opting to take the train has increased from 3.4 per cent in 2006 to 3.9 per cent in 2011, putting the train in the top three methods of travel to work.”

The results also indicate a small decline in the proportion of people who choose to walk to work, with only 3.7 per cent of people in 2011 compared to four per cent in 2006, reflecting a slower growth rate for walking compared to other methods of travel.

Other popular methods of travel to work include travelling by bus (three per cent), truck (one per cent) and bicycle (one per cent).

Mr Henderson added that the latest release of Census data will inform future planning for public transport and other vital services in communities across Australia.

“Census data is used to allocate government funding for all areas of Australia, and to plan vital services and infrastructure that we all use in our communities every day,” Mr Henderson said.

“Census data is available for free on the ABS website, where you can find new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, Community Profiles and Table Builder programs, which make searching Census data quick and easy.”

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Education

30 October 2012

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today has shown an increase in the proportion of people opting to further their career options by undertaking additional studies.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said in particular, the latest Census figures show a significant increase in the number of people who reported completing a Postgraduate Degree.

“The number of people who have successfully completed a Postgraduate Degree has risen from 413,093 in 2006 to 631,121 in 2011 – an increase of 52.8 per cent,” Mr Henderson said.

“We’ve also seen a 27.2 per cent increase in the number of people who reported completing a Bachelor Degree, from 1,840,663 in 2006 to 2,340,509 in 2011.”

Management and Commerce (18 per cent) and Engineering and Related Technologies (15.6 per cent) were the two most common reported fields of study.

“These fields were also reported as the most common fields of study in 2006. However, there has been an increase in the proportion of people who reported Management and Commerce related studies, while the proportion of people who reported Engineering and Related Technologies studies has declined,” Mr Henderson said.

More than three quarters of those who reported either Health (77.6 per cent) or Education (75.3 per cent) as fields of study were females.

Mr Henderson added that the latest release of Census data will be used to inform future planning for education and other vital services in communities across Australia.

“Census data is used to allocate government funding for all areas of Australia, and to plan vital services and infrastructure that we all use in our communities every day,” Mr Henderson said.

“Census data is available for free on the ABS website, where you can find new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, Community Profiles and Table Builder programs, which make searching Census data quick and easy.”

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: State and territory migration

30 October 2012

The latest figures from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today show changes in Australia’s internal migration patterns.

Internal migration is the movement of people from one place of residence to another within Australia, and these figures are traditionally used for infrastructure and community planning.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said the latest figures have shown a continued decline in the proportion of people who have moved home in the five years prior to Census night.

“There has been a significant increase in the number of people who maintain their usual address in the five years prior to Census night,” Mr Henderson said.

“We’ve also noticed significant growth in the number of people moving to Australia from overseas.”

Following a continuing trend from 2006, the 2011 Census showed that 84.1 per cent of people had not moved in the one year prior to Census night, while 14.2 per cent of people had moved in the year prior to the Census, and 1.5 per cent were recent migrants or recently returned to Australia.

Those people who did report a different place of residence one year ago predominantly moved within the state and territory where they usually reside. The next largest movements can generally be attributed to those returning or migrating from overseas.

The Census collects information on where people lived, one year ago and five years ago prior to Census night. This information only reflects movements which coincide with these particular points in time, even though there may have been multiple movements during this period.

Mr Henderson encouraged everyone to make use of Australia’s richest source of statistical data.

“I’d like to thank everyone for their participation, and in return I encourage everyone to make use of Australia’s richest source of statistical information,” Mr Henderson said.

“Census data are available free online and can be used for a wide range of purposes. Our range of new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, makes searching Census data quick and easy,” he added.

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

New data from the 2011 Census released today: Mining

30 October 2012

Australia’s Mining industry has recorded the highest growth in employment since the 2006 Census.

The Mining industry now accounts for 1.8 per cent of Australia’s employment, an increase from 1.2 per cent in 2006.

The latest data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today, following last year’s Census of Population and Housing, has shown a 65.2 per cent, or 69,667 people, increase in the number of people who reported Mining as their industry of employment.

Census Executive Director Andrew Henderson said while the Census does not collect specific information on fly-in, fly-out workers, data on workforce and industry may be used to shed some light on populations that include large numbers of people working in the Mining industry.

“Western Australia and Queensland have dominated the top-20 list of places where people reported working in the Mining industry in Australia,” Mr Henderson said.

“The Perth City (Western Australia), East Pilbara (Western Australia), Broadsound–Nebo (Queensland), Ashburton (Western Australia) and Singleton Region (New South Wales) areas reported the highest number of people working in the mining sector.”

Mr Henderson added that the latest release of Census data will inform future planning for vital services in communities across Australia.

“Census data is used to allocate government funding for all areas of Australia, and to plan vital services and infrastructure that we all use in our communities every day,” he said.

“Census data is available for free on the ABS website, where you can find new, easy-to-use tools, including QuickStats, Community Profiles and Table Builder programs, which make searching Census data quick and easy.”

Data from the 2011 Census of Population and Housing is now available on the ABS website. Visit www.abs.gov.au/census

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