The 2018-19 Multipurpose Household Survey (MPHS) revealed that of the 19 million people aged 18+ years there were 10.5 million people who did not work full-time.
- 17% not participating in the labour force would like a job
- 1 in 3 people working less than 16 hours would like to work more hours
Preference for more hours or work
| Employed | Not employed | TOTAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Usually works 16-34 hours per week | Usually works fewer than 16 hours per week | Unemployed | Not in the labour force | ||
| People aged over 18 years | 2,741,500 | 1,160,500 | 600,300 | 6,066,400 | 10,568,700 |
| Would like to work more hours / Would like a job | 639,400 (23%) | 396,800 (34%) | 600,300 (100%) | 1,044,100 (17%) | 2,680,600 |
| Did not want more hours / Did not want a job | 2,102,000 (77%) | 763,800 (66%) | - | 5,022,300 (83%) | 7,888,100 |
Wanted a job or preferred to work more hours
There were 2.7 million people who did not work full-time and wanted a job or preferred to work more hours. Determining whether these people wanted a job or were available to work more hours is important because those who are available have a greater potential to participate or increase their participation in the labour force than those who are not available.
Of the 2.7 million people who wanted a job or preferred to work more hours, most were available to start within 4 weeks (2.3 million).
267,800 people were not available to start a job or work with more hours within four weeks.
- the main reason women were unavailable to start work was "Caring for children" (48%)
- the main reason men were unavailable to start work was "Long term sickness or disability" (32%).
Note: Availability refers to the reference week or within four weeks.
Difficulty finding a job or work with more hours
Of the 2.3 million people who wanted a job or more hours and were available to start, only about half were actively looking for work (1.2 million).
The main difficulties reported for finding work or more hours included:
- Too many applicants for available jobs (16%)
- No jobs with suitable conditions/arrangements (13%)
- No jobs or vacancies in locality/line of work/at all (12%).
Were available and looking for a job or more hours
There were 1.2 million people who wanted a job or work with more hours, were available and were looking, of whom:
- 600,300 (52%) people were classified as unemployed
- 67,600 (6%) were not in the labour force (these people were not classified as unemployed because they were not available to start work in the reference week, but were available to start within 4 weeks).
- 495,400 (42%) were employed and usually worked less than 35 hours.
Incentive to join/increase participation in the labour force
Incentives to join/increase participation in the labour force were asked of people aged 18-75 years who were either:
- Not in the labour force, excluding those permanently unable to work and those permanently retired
- Unemployed
- People who usually worked part-time (less than 35 hours).
Incentives that were rated as 'very important' included:
- Work related incentives
- Skill related incentives
- Childcare related incentives
The most important incentive for women was "Access to childcare place" (52% of women rates this as "very important") while for men it was "Financial assistance with childcare costs" (37% of men).
Note: Only includes incentives that were considered ‘Very important’.
The most important incentives for people;
- Not in the labour force was "Financial assistance with childcare costs" (49% rated this "very important")
- Unemployed was "Getting a job that matches skills and experience" (66%)
- Employed was "Ability to work part-time hours" (52%)
Were available and not looking for a job or more hours
There were 1.1 million people who wanted a job or work with more hours, were available but were not looking. 62% of these people were women and they commonly reported that "Caring for Children" was the main reason for not looking for a job or work with more hours (85% compared to 15% for men)
Did not want a job or more hours
Approximately 7.8 million people who were not in the labour force or who worked fewer than 35 hours reported that they did not want a job or more hours.
The main reason people not in the labour force did not want a job included:
- Permanently retired from full-time work/will not work full-time again (37%)
- No need/satisfied with current arrangements/retired from full-time work (for now) (22%)
- Long-term sickness or disability (17%)
For people who usually worked part-time, the main reason for not wanting more hours included:
- No need/satisfied with current arrangements/retired from full-time work (for now) (40%)
- Caring for children (20%)
- Studying/returning to studies. (20%)
