Secure jobs

Broad opportunities for employment and well-paid, secure jobs

Release date and time

15/09/2025 11:30am AEST

Released 15/09/2025

Metrics

Proportion of employed people who expect to not remain in the same job in 12 months’ time due to involuntary reasons
Proportion of employees who had irregular working arrangements
Proportion of employees who do not have paid leave entitlements

Why this matters

Job security is a broad and multi-faceted concept. Elements of a job that contribute to job security include, but are not limited to, the likelihood of a worker keeping their job, access to paid leave entitlements, and regularity of hours or a minimum number of hours.

Progress

Expectations about remaining in the same job

In May 2025, 1.4% of employed people reported they did not expect to remain in their current job in 12 months' time due to involuntary reasons. The proportion has remained relatively stable over the 20-year period to May 2025, ranging between 1.1% and 2.2%.

Proportion of employed people who do not expect to remain in their current job in 12 months’ time for involuntary reasons (a)
	Males (%)	Females (%)	People (%)
May-05	1.3	1.5	1.4
Aug-05	1.3	1.5	1.4
Nov-05	1.3	1.7	1.5
Feb-06	1.4	1.5	1.4
May-06	1.2	1.3	1.2
Aug-06	1.3	1.6	1.4
Nov-06	1.1	1.4	1.2
Feb-07	1.2	1.2	1.2
May-07	1.0	1.3	1.1
Aug-07	1.2	1.2	1.2
Nov-07	1.1	1.4	1.3
Feb-08	1.2	1.3	1.3
May-08	1.1	1.3	1.2
Aug-08	1.1	1.5	1.3
Nov-08	1.5	1.4	1.5
Feb-09	1.6	1.4	1.5
May-09	1.7	1.6	1.7
Aug-09	1.2	1.4	1.3
Nov-09	1.4	1.3	1.4
Feb-10	1.4	1.2	1.3
May-10	1.4	1.3	1.4
Aug-10	1.2	1.1	1.2
Nov-10	1.2	1.3	1.2
Feb-11	1.1	1.1	1.1
May-11	1.3	1.3	1.3
Aug-11	1.3	1.4	1.4
Nov-11	1.3	1.4	1.4
Feb-12	1.5	1.3	1.4
May-12	1.7	1.5	1.6
Aug-12	1.5	1.4	1.4
Nov-12	1.5	1.5	1.5
Feb-13	1.5	1.5	1.5
May-13	1.6	1.4	1.5
Aug-13	1.6	1.5	1.5
Nov-13	1.8	1.8	1.8
Feb-14	1.8	1.7	1.7
May-14	2.0	2.0	2.0
Aug-14	2.2	2.2	2.2
Nov-14	2.1	2.1	2.1
Feb-15	1.8	1.8	1.8
May-15	2.1	1.9	2.0
Aug-15	1.7	1.9	1.8
Nov-15	1.8	1.7	1.8
Feb-16	2.1	1.6	1.9
May-16	1.8	1.8	1.8
Aug-16	1.8	1.7	1.8
Nov-16	1.8	2.0	1.9
Feb-17	1.8	1.9	1.8
May-17	1.6	1.7	1.7
Aug-17	1.6	1.7	1.7
Nov-17	1.5	1.7	1.6
Feb-18	1.7	1.6	1.6
May-18	1.6	1.7	1.7
Aug-18	1.6	1.4	1.5
Nov-18	1.5	1.5	1.5
Feb-19	1.4	1.6	1.5
May-19	1.5	1.7	1.6
Aug-19	1.5	1.5	1.5
Nov-19	1.8	1.5	1.7
Feb-20	1.7	1.4	1.6
May-20	1.8	2.0	1.9
Aug-20	2.0	2.1	2.1
Nov-20	1.9	2.1	2.0
Feb-21	1.8	1.8	1.8
May-21	1.6	1.7	1.6
Aug-21	1.4	1.9	1.6
Nov-21	1.3	1.7	1.5
Feb-22	1.2	1.6	1.4
May-22	1.3	1.6	1.5
Aug-22	1.4	1.8	1.6
Nov-22	1.3	1.5	1.4
Feb-23	1.2	1.3	1.2
May-23	1.3	1.4	1.4
Aug-23	1.2	1.1	1.2
Nov-23	1.3	1.6	1.4
Feb-24	1.3	1.3	1.3
May-24	1.0	1.5	1.3
Aug-24	1.3	1.6	1.5
Nov-24	1.3	1.5	1.4
Feb-25	1.2	1.4	1.3
May-25	1.4	1.4	1.4

Proportion of employed people who do not expect to remain in their current job in 12 months’ time for involuntary reasons (a)

["","Males","Females","People"]

[["May-05","Aug-05","Nov-05","Feb-06","May-06","Aug-06","Nov-06","Feb-07","May-07","Aug-07","Nov-07","Feb-08","May-08","Aug-08","Nov-08","Feb-09","May-09","Aug-09","Nov-09","Feb-10","May-10","Aug-10","Nov-10","Feb-11","May-11","Aug-11","Nov-11","Feb-12","May-12","Aug-12","Nov-12","Feb-13","May-13","Aug-13","Nov-13","Feb-14","May-14","Aug-14","Nov-14","Feb-15","May-15","Aug-15","Nov-15","Feb-16","May-16","Aug-16","Nov-16","Feb-17","May-17","Aug-17","Nov-17","Feb-18","May-18","Aug-18","Nov-18","Feb-19","May-19","Aug-19","Nov-19","Feb-20","May-20","Aug-20","Nov-20","Feb-21","May-21","Aug-21","Nov-21","Feb-22","May-22","Aug-22","Nov-22","Feb-23","May-23","Aug-23","Nov-23","Feb-24","May-24","Aug-24","Nov-24","Feb-25","May-25"],[[1.303613056],[1.335015193],[1.3378083],[1.361221557],[1.177996814],[1.286425853],[1.069800237],[1.194942869],[1.033496298],[1.18490662],[1.139732996],[1.242264247],[1.056191892],[1.119498254],[1.519489255],[1.622172074],[1.709514916],[1.16736746],[1.409282732],[1.393964631],[1.387059632],[1.175893465],[1.181617307],[1.077982969],[1.287327107],[1.318093481],[1.324321041],[1.497978265],[1.656507781],[1.463025814],[1.468598873],[1.508221223],[1.559443132],[1.562540617],[1.811583713],[1.801269586],[2.014422534],[2.179509249],[2.055688948],[1.844357081],[2.1062612],[1.700850197],[1.81790184],[2.133569537],[1.776635335],[1.792301204],[1.813902825],[1.773272633],[1.611329681],[1.617634245],[1.541182824],[1.669907599],[1.566484176],[1.584945586],[1.537353711],[1.419214663],[1.510007309],[1.49765718],[1.782995706],[1.662004054],[1.816648434],[2.024453387],[1.859532326],[1.750478406],[1.556270874],[1.446345777],[1.318643603],[1.223989462],[1.316988563],[1.392741025],[1.305180349],[1.159184151],[1.3268239],[1.234480359],[1.26472794],[1.28257015],[1.031164129],[1.287800412],[1.26566885],[1.22964187],[1.370833929]],[[1.466655935],[1.525952724],[1.691616429],[1.453343611],[1.327208204],[1.594241344],[1.406176374],[1.170666366],[1.264294727],[1.150030516],[1.399626585],[1.273019745],[1.325110019],[1.490809221],[1.390474444],[1.350197948],[1.632542116],[1.419192758],[1.296377286],[1.224525853],[1.333490186],[1.136709966],[1.290979556],[1.051996093],[1.290751955],[1.408360767],[1.436498579],[1.340034686],[1.47041443],[1.428445173],[1.485292796],[1.486708429],[1.388307012],[1.485626764],[1.815005451],[1.671082009],[2.026678728],[2.237185432],[2.099437855],[1.829762703],[1.853628097],[1.904498361],[1.715190212],[1.645790415],[1.836203191],[1.732242039],[1.960822107],[1.89477265],[1.724597003],[1.738469287],[1.686614536],[1.626900578],[1.745366351],[1.420555292],[1.502009177],[1.608765223],[1.673288742],[1.522350602],[1.515740422],[1.446427215],[1.962666914],[2.106944322],[2.082749203],[1.822081064],[1.745313818],[1.867050317],[1.670352205],[1.623737032],[1.64992022],[1.755153547],[1.522811039],[1.333322507],[1.39570261],[1.147044647],[1.588490667],[1.329378858],[1.525227497],[1.632734242],[1.527533842],[1.407120859],[1.403628391]],[[1.3768824],[1.420820277],[1.497541506],[1.402547372],[1.245531716],[1.425400709],[1.22188165],[1.184025708],[1.137527632],[1.169198883],[1.257298867],[1.256112988],[1.177907628],[1.287577692],[1.461000868],[1.498259421],[1.674270516],[1.281986638],[1.35773184],[1.317233507],[1.362711922],[1.158123007],[1.231275104],[1.066221618],[1.288885659],[1.359314699],[1.375555708],[1.4260993],[1.571358121],[1.44719732],[1.476250909],[1.498379938],[1.481087406],[1.527225915],[1.81315846],[1.741737827],[2.020066646],[2.206159716],[2.07579221],[1.837647494],[1.989649442],[1.795275617],[1.770040491],[1.907209651],[1.804330266],[1.764344911],[1.882520022],[1.829813533],[1.664304295],[1.674313133],[1.609615703],[1.649729398],[1.650591283],[1.507889052],[1.520712716],[1.508185502],[1.586636777],[1.509293569],[1.656362539],[1.55987938],[1.88513929],[2.063524031],[1.965008273],[1.784411375],[1.646423667],[1.645803722],[1.485932079],[1.414999616],[1.475847981],[1.565862304],[1.409043277],[1.242108829],[1.359787377],[1.19278699],[1.419572441],[1.304982616],[1.267492941],[1.452921387],[1.390704821],[1.314605216],[1.386648917]]]

[]

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Involuntary reasons include: employer or own business closing down or downsizing; or expects seasonal work, temporary job, fixed-term contract, or casual work to end.

Data Source

ABS Labour Force, Detailed, Australia - Table 17

Irregular working arrangements

In 2024, the proportion of employees with irregular working arrangements was slightly lower than in 2022 (23% compared with 26%).

Proportion of employees who had irregular working arrangements (a)
	People (%)
2014	24.4
2016	25.0
2018	24.8
2020	25.4
2022	26.0
2024	22.6

Proportion of employees who had irregular working arrangements (a)

["","People"]

[["2014","2016","2018","2020","2022","2024"],[[24.36549308],[24.9595179],[24.76202576],[25.4171296],[25.97104709],[22.62634124]]]

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Irregular working arrangements is defined as:
1. not guaranteed number of hours each week in main job, or
2. income varies from one pay period to the next and did not usually work same number of hours each week in main job.

Data Source

ABS Characteristics of Employment, custom analysis

Paid leave entitlements

In May 2025, 21% of employees did not have paid leave entitlements, similar to May 2024 (22%), and lower than in August 2014 (24%).

Proportion of employees who did not have access to paid leave entitlements
	Males (%)	Females (%)	People (%)
Aug-14	21.5	26.9	24.1
Nov-14	21.5	27.2	24.3
Feb-15	21.4	26.5	23.9
May-15	23.0	27.5	25.2
Aug-15	22.0	27.1	24.5
Nov-15	21.6	27.2	24.4
Feb-16	21.7	25.6	23.6
May-16	23.4	27.6	25.5
Aug-16	23.3	26.9	25.1
Nov-16	23.4	27.6	25.4
Feb-17	23.0	26.4	24.7
May-17	22.8	27.1	24.9
Aug-17	23.2	26.8	25.0
Nov-17	23.6	27.0	25.3
Feb-18	23.0	26.4	24.7
May-18	23.1	27.0	25.1
Aug-18	22.4	26.7	24.5
Nov-18	23.4	27.1	25.2
Feb-19	22.2	26.0	24.1
May-19	23.1	26.8	24.9
Aug-19	22.2	25.9	24.0
Nov-19	22.2	26.2	24.2
Feb-20	22.6	25.7	24.1
May-20	19.6	21.7	20.6
Aug-20	20.6	23.8	22.2
Nov-20	21.2	24.6	22.9
Feb-21	21.2	24.9	23.0
May-21	21.5	25.9	23.7
Aug-21	21.0	24.2	22.6
Nov-21	21.3	24.6	23.0
Feb-22	21.3	24.6	23.0
May-22	21.2	25.3	23.2
Aug-22	21.7	25.6	23.6
Nov-22	21.4	25.3	23.3
Feb-23	20.9	23.4	22.1
May-23	20.9	23.7	22.3
Aug-23	20.9	24.1	22.5
Nov-23	21.2	23.9	22.6
Feb-24	21.0	23.7	22.3
May-24	21.0	24.0	22.5
Aug-24	21.0	23.6	22.3
Nov-24	20.5	23.9	22.2
Feb-25	20.1	22.6	21.4
May-25	20.2	22.4	21.3

Proportion of employees who did not have access to paid leave entitlements

["","Males","Females","People"]

[["Aug-14","Nov-14","Feb-15","May-15","Aug-15","Nov-15","Feb-16","May-16","Aug-16","Nov-16","Feb-17","May-17","Aug-17","Nov-17","Feb-18","May-18","Aug-18","Nov-18","Feb-19","May-19","Aug-19","Nov-19","Feb-20","May-20","Aug-20","Nov-20","Feb-21","May-21","Aug-21","Nov-21","Feb-22","May-22","Aug-22","Nov-22","Feb-23","May-23","Aug-23","Nov-23","Feb-24","May-24","Aug-24","Nov-24","Feb-25","May-25"],[[21.4926636],[21.5433781],[21.43820973],[22.99706607],[21.95687542],[21.61378448],[21.65315171],[23.43476136],[23.28417658],[23.35534536],[22.99006685],[22.77734998],[23.18917986],[23.58948913],[22.96905859],[23.13501084],[22.40498643],[23.44018533],[22.21253001],[23.06147378],[22.20879555],[22.23192874],[22.56934443],[19.55230966],[20.56272884],[21.15211927],[21.23968241],[21.47536786],[20.9978605],[21.31892447],[21.2615358],[21.16737356],[21.66593242],[21.39488521],[20.85029117],[20.87367335],[20.85582857],[21.17442268],[20.95453276],[20.97110769],[21.01747167],[20.53204477],[20.14300785],[20.16074734]],[[26.87762492],[27.1863328],[26.496515],[27.54699854],[27.09046156],[27.18493778],[25.5673223],[27.64131511],[26.94281072],[27.58855264],[26.40041293],[27.08604644],[26.79803111],[26.99568399],[26.3800556],[27.00561807],[26.73117695],[27.09369558],[26.03358353],[26.83829147],[25.91773337],[26.20452235],[25.70873892],[21.74715179],[23.78477834],[24.64250349],[24.86255145],[25.8766347],[24.22733115],[24.59546959],[24.63066818],[25.27612977],[25.57218383],[25.25898991],[23.39296367],[23.65716291],[24.09895304],[23.94222214],[23.71575016],[24.00860433],[23.55362545],[23.92776923],[22.64532397],[22.3853003]],[[24.12691285],[24.27797557],[23.88332388],[25.21001873],[24.47000822],[24.35833027],[23.56980949],[25.49344382],[25.07774612],[25.43557011],[24.66341541],[24.89657377],[24.97565344],[25.28255501],[24.65997052],[25.05270732],[24.53712863],[25.24969617],[24.09627516],[24.92511406],[24.04487613],[24.20654267],[24.13070275],[20.63301537],[22.16590575],[22.8831828],[23.04062532],[23.67310865],[22.60313299],[22.95272874],[22.95350842],[23.22190134],[23.62382056],[23.32729338],[22.11600403],[22.267133],[22.4792247],[22.55902069],[22.33671747],[22.49391042],[22.28784083],[22.22931019],[21.3979494],[21.28903202]]]

[]

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Data Source

ABS Labour Force, Australia, Detailed - Table EQ04

Differences across groups

In May 2025, the proportion of employed people who did not expect to remain in their current job in 12 months’ time for involuntary reasons was similar for males (1.4%) and females (1.4%).

In 2024, the proportion of employees that had irregular working arrangements was around the same for males (22%) and females (23%).

In May 2025, 20% of male employees did not have access to paid leave entitlements compared to 22% of female employees.