6222.0 - Job Search Experience, Australia, Jul 2006  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 15/12/2006   
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GLOSSARY

Active steps taken to find work


Active steps taken by unemployed people in their search for work during the current period of unemployment include:

  • wrote, phoned or applied in person to an employer for work
  • answered an advertisement for a job in a newspaper
  • answered an advertisement for a job on the internet
  • answered an advertisement for a job on Centrelink touchscreens
  • answered an advertisement for a job on workplace noticeboards
  • contacted friends or relatives
  • advertised or tendered for work
  • registered with a Job Network employment agency
  • registered with other employment agency
  • registered with Centrelink as a job seeker.

All difficulties in finding work


All difficulties in finding work experienced by unemployed people during the current period of unemployment.


All steps taken to find work


All steps taken by unemployed people in their search for work during the current period of unemployment.


All steps taken to attain a job


All steps taken to attain a job by people who started their current job in the last 12 months, but not necessarily only the steps taken to attain their current job.


Bachelor Degree or above


Bachelor Degree or above includes qualifications at the Post Graduate Degree Level, Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate Level and Bachelor Degree Level.


Centrelink


Centrelink is a statutory authority responsible for delivering a range of Commonwealth Government services, including the registration of people for job search assistance and income support.


Certificate not further defined


Survey responses are coded to Certificate not further defined (n.f.d.) when there is not enough information to code them to Certificate I, II, III or IV in the Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED), Level of Education Classification.


Contributing family workers


People who work without pay, in an economic enterprise operated by a relative.


Current job


A job that a person is currently working in, was started in the last 12 months and has lasted or is likely to last for a period of two weeks or more. For people who have commenced more than one job in the last 12 months, it is the job most recently started.


Duration of current period of unemployment


The elapsed period to the end of the reference week since a person began looking for work, or since a person last worked for two weeks or more, whichever is the shorter. Brief periods of work (of less than two weeks) since the person began looking for work are disregarded.


Employed


People aged 15 years and over who, during the reference week:

  • worked for one hour or more for pay, profit, commission or payment in kind, in a job or business or on a farm (comprising employees, employers and own account workers); or
  • worked for one hour or more without pay in a family business or on a farm (i.e. contributing family workers); or
  • were employees who had a job but were not at work and were:
      • away from work for less than four weeks up to the end of the reference week; or
      • away from work for more than four weeks up to the end of the reference week and received pay for some or all of the four week period to the end of the reference week; or
      • away from work as a standard work or shift arrangement; or
      • on strike or locked out; or
      • on workers' compensation and expected to return to their job; or
  • were employers or own account workers who had a job, business or farm, but were not at work.

Employed in own business


People who work in their own business, with or without employees, whether the business is incorporated or not. Those who work in their own incorporated enterprise are classified as employees under 'status in employment'. Those who work in their own unincorporated enterprise are classified under 'status in employment' as employers if their business has employees, or own account workers if they do not. In this survey, these people are not asked about their job search experience.


Employees


People who work for a public or private employer and receive remuneration in wages, salary, a retainer fee from their employer while working on a commission basis, tips, piece rates, or payment in kind, or people who operate their own incorporated enterprise with or without hiring employees.


Employers


People who operate their own unincorporated economic enterprise or engage independently in a profession or trade, and hire one or more employees.


Employment type in current job


Classifies employed people according to the following categories on the basis of their current job:

  • Employees (excluding OMIEs)
      • With paid leave entitlements
      • Without paid leave entitlements
  • Owner managers of incorporated enterprises
  • Owner managers of unincorporated enterprises
  • Contributing family workers

Employment type in main job


Classifies employed people according to the following categories on the basis of their main job (that is, the job in which the most hours were usually worked):

  • Employees (excluding OMIEs)
  • Owner managers of incorporated enterprises
  • Owner managers of unincorporated enterprises
  • Contributing family workers

Full-time workers


Employed people who usually worked 35 hours or more a week (in all jobs) and others who, although usually working less than 35 hours a week, worked 35 hours or more during the reference week.


Incorporated enterprise


An enterprise which is registered as a separate legal entity to its members or owners (also known as a limited liability company).


Industry


All occurrences of industry in this publication refer to Division, as classified by the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC), 1993 (cat. no. 1292.0).


Job leavers


Unemployed people who have worked for two weeks or more in the past two years and left that job voluntarily, for example, because of unsatisfactory work arrangements/pay/hours; the job was a holiday job or they left the job to return to studies; or their last job was running their own business and they closed down or sold that business for reasons other than financial difficulties.


Job losers


Unemployed people who have worked for two weeks or more in the past two years and left that job involuntarily, that is, were laid off or retrenched from that job; left that job because of their own ill-health or injury; the job was seasonal or temporary; or their last job was running their own business and the business closed down because of financial difficulties.


Job Network employment agency


The Job Network is a national network of private, community and government organisations on contract to the government to provide employment placement services to the community. Job seekers who are registered with Centrelink for job search assistance are able to contact any Job Network provider in their area to receive this service.


Level of highest educational attainment


Level of highest educational attainment identifies the highest achievement a person has attained in any area of study. It is defined as the highest educational attainment a person has achieved, and is not a measurement of relative importance of different fields of study. See Appendix 1 for further information.


Level of highest non-school qualification


Non-school qualifications are awarded for educational attainments other than those of pre-primary, primary or secondary education. They include qualifications at the Post Graduate Degree Level, Master Degree Level, Graduate Diploma and Graduate Certificate Level, Bachelor Degree Level, Advanced Diploma and Diploma level, and Certificates I, II, III and IV levels. Non-school qualifications may be attained concurrently with school qualifications. See Appendix 1 for further information.


Long-term unemployed


People who are currently unemployed and have been unemployed for 12 months or more.


Looking for full-time work


Unemployed people who:

  • actively looked for full-time work and were available for work in the reference week; or
  • actively looked for work and were not available for work in the reference week because they were waiting to start a new full-time job.

Looking for part-time work


Unemployed people who:

  • actively looked for part-time work only and were available for work in the reference week; or
  • actively looked for work and were not available for work in the reference week because they were waiting to start a new part-time job.

Main difficulty in finding work


The main difficulty in finding work experienced during the current period of unemployment.


Main English-speaking countries


Comprises the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, South Africa, the United States of America and New Zealand.


Main job


The job in which most hours are usually worked.


Mean duration of current period of unemployment


The duration obtained by dividing the aggregate number of weeks a group has been unemployed by the number of people in that group.


Median duration of current period of unemployment


The duration which divides unemployed people into two equal size groups, one comprising people whose duration of unemployment is above the median, and the other, people whose duration is below it.


Mean duration of looking for work before being offered job


The duration obtained by dividing the aggregate number of weeks a group was looking for work before being offered their current job by the number of people in that group.


Median duration of looking for work before being offered job


The duration which divides people into two equal size groups, one comprising people whose duration of looking for work before being offered their current job is above the median, and the other, people whose duration is below it.


Number of offers of employment


The number of separate offers of employment received during the current period of unemployment.


Number of spells of looking for work in the previous 12 months


The number of times people reported being out of work and looking for a job during the 12 months up to the end of the reference week.


Occupation


All occurrences of occupation in this publication relate to Major Group as defined by the ASCO - Australian Standard Classification of Occupations, Second Edition, 1997 (cat. no. 1220.0).


Own account workers


People who operate their own unincorporated economic enterprise or engaged independently in a profession or trade, and hired no employees.


Owner managers


People who work in their own business, with or without employees, whether or not the business is of limited liability. Comprises owner managers of incorporated enterprises and owner managers of unincorporated enterprises.


Owner managers of incorporated enterprises


People who work in their own incorporated enterprise, that is, a business entity which is registered as a separate legal entity to its members or owners (also known as a limited liability company). These people are classified as employees under 'status in employment'.


Owner managers of unincorporated enterprises


People who operate their own unincorporated enterprise, that is, a business entity in which the owner and the business are legally inseparable, so that the owner is liable for any business debts that are incurred. Includes those engaged independently in a trade or profession. These people are classified as employers under 'status in employment' if their business has employees, or own account worker if they do not.


Part-time workers


Employed people who usually worked less than 35 hours a week (in all jobs) and who did so during the reference week, or were not at work in the reference week.


Preferred to work more hours


Whether employed people who usually worked part-time hours, preferred to work more hours.


Status in employment


Employed people classified by whether they were employees, employers, own account workers or contributing family workers.


Time spent looking for work in the previous 12 months


The total number of weeks a person has been both out of work and looking for work at the same time during the 12 months up to the end of the reference week.


Unemployed


People aged 15 years and over who were not employed during the reference week, and:

  • had actively looked for full-time or part-time work at any time in the four weeks up to the end of the reference week and were available for work in the reference week; or
  • were waiting to start a new job within four weeks from the end of the reference week, and could have started in the reference week if the job had been available then.

Usually worked part-time hours


Employed people who usually worked less than 35 hours a week (in all jobs).


Whether had prior knowledge that job was available


Whether employed people knew that a job was available with their current employer before making an approach to that employer for a job.


Whether first job ever held lasting two weeks or more


Whether the job currently held by an employed person is the first job they have ever held lasting two weeks or more.


Whether had ever worked for two weeks or more


Whether unemployed people had previously held a job lasting two weeks or more.


Whether out of work prior to starting job


Whether employed people were unemployed prior to starting the job they currently held.


With paid leave entitlements


The entitlement of employees (excluding OMIEs) to either paid holiday leave or paid sick leave (or both) in their current job. People employed in their own business or who were contributing family workers were not asked questions about paid leave entitlements.


Without paid leave entitlements


Employees (excluding OMIEs) who were not entitled to paid holiday leave and paid sick leave, or did not know whether they were entitled to paid sick leave and paid holiday leave in their current job.