2900.0 - Census of Population and Housing: Understanding the Census and Census Data, Australia , 2016  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 08/11/2017  First Issue
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Hours Worked (HRSP) and Hours Worked in ranges (HRWRP)

This variable records the number of hours worked in all jobs held during the week prior to Census night by employed people. This excludes any time off but includes overtime and extra time worked. This variable is applicable to all persons aged 15 years or older who list their employment status as 'employed'.

How this variable is created

Data for this variable is captured automatically from written numeric responses, or the 'None' mark box, from the question on the Census paper form. This process is subject to low levels of recognition error and so the data is subject to sample checks to ensure an acceptable level of quality. In addition, outlying values are checked manually to ensure that they match the actual response on the form. The data may include a small proportion of persons with an unusual number of hours worked, as all numeric responses are accepted as reported. An image of the question is provided below.

Variable history

The question relating to Hours Worked was first asked in the 1966 Census. In 1971, 1976 and since 1996, the hours worked question has focused on hours worked in all jobs held in the week prior to the Census. The Hours Worked (ranges) variable was first introduced for the 2011 Census. One change was made to this question for the 2016 Census - the 'None' mark box from the question was removed from the online version of the Census form.

Non-response rate

Unlike most Census variables, the non-response rate for Hours Worked is not affected by persons who did not return a Census form because this variable is only applicable to persons with a labour force status of 'employed'. Persons who do not respond to the labour force status questions have a labour force status of not stated and fall in the 'not applicable' category within Hours Worked variable. For more information about non-response rates, refer to Understanding Census data quality.

The non-response rate for this variable was 1.9% (2.2% in 2011).

Further information

A definition of Hours Worked is available in the 2016 Census Dictionary.
Hours Worked in ranges is also available. A definition of Hours Worked (ranges) is available in the 2016 Census Dictionary.
For information related to the use of Hours Worked in determining full/part-time status for employment, see the data quality statement for Labour Force Status.

Household form question image

Question 44 as it appeared on the 2016 Census Household Paper Form:

Image: 2016 Household Paper Form - Question 44. Last week, how many hours did the person work in all jobs?
A text only version of the online Census Household form is available from the Downloads tab.