6203.0 - Labour Force, Australia, Oct 2001  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 30/11/2001   
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Actively looking for work

Includes writing, telephoning or applying in person to an employer for work; answering an advertisement for a job; checking factory noticeboards or the touchscreens at Centrelink offices; being registered with Centrelink as a jobseeker; checking or registering with any other employment agency; advertising or tendering for work; and contacting friends or relatives.

Aggregate hours worked

The total number of hours a group of employed persons has actually worked during the reference week, not necessarily hours paid for.

Attending school

Persons aged 15-19 years enrolled at secondary or high school in the reference week.

Attending tertiary educational institution full time

Persons aged 15-24 years who were enrolled full time at a TAFE college, university, or other educational institution in the reference week, except those persons aged 15-19 who were still attending school.

Average duration of unemployment

For a group of unemployed persons, the aggregate duration of unemployment divided by the number of persons in the group.

Average family size

For any group of families, the total number of family members divided by the number of families in the group.

Average hours worked

Aggregate hours worked by a group divided by the number of persons in that group.

Birthplace

From April 1991, classified according to the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) (1269.0).

Civilian population aged 15 years and over

All usual residents of Australia aged 15 years and over except members of the permanent defence forces, certain diplomatic personnel of overseas governments customarily excluded from census and estimated population counts, overseas residents in Australia, and members of non-Australian defence forces (and their dependants) stationed in Australia.

Contributing family worker

A person who works without pay, in an economic enterprise operated by a relative. (This category was formerly entitled unpaid family helper).

Couple families

A family based on two persons who are in a registered or de-facto marriage and who are usually resident in the same household.

Dependent child

Any child in a family under 15 years of age or aged 15-24 years who is a full-time student (except those who have a partner or child of their own usually resident in the household).

Dependent student

A child who is 15-24 years of age and who attends a secondary school, or tertiary educational institution as a full-time student, and who has no partner or child of his or her own usually resident in the same household.

Duration 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

Persons 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.

Employee

A person who works for a public or private employer and receives remuneration in wages, salary, a retainer fee by their employer while working on a commission basis, tips, piece-rates or payment in kind, or a person who operates his or her own incorporated enterprise with or without hiring employees.

Employer

A person who operates his or her own unincorporated economic enterprise or engages independently in a profession or trade, and hires one or more employees.

Employment/population ratio

For any group, the number of employed persons expressed as a percentage of the civilian population aged 15 years and over in the same group.

Family

Two or more persons, one of whom is at least 15 years of age, who are related by blood, marriage (registered or de facto), adoption, step or fostering; and who are usually resident in the same household. The basis of a family is formed by identifying the presence of a couple relationship, lone parent-child relationship or other blood relationship. Some households will, therefore, contain more than one family.

Family reference person

In families which are not couple families or one parent families, as defined, the family reference person is the eldest person in the household (this was formerly entitled family head).

Former workers

Unemployed persons who have previously worked for two weeks or more but not in the past two years.

Full-time workers

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

Household

A group of one or more persons in a private dwelling who consider themselves to be separate from other persons (if any) in the dwelling, and who make regular provision to take meals separately from other persons, i.e. at different times or in different rooms. Lodgers who receive accommodation but not meals are treated as separate households. Boarders who receive both accommodation and meals are not treated as separate households. A household may consist of any number of families and non-family members.

Industry

From August 1994, classified according to the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) 1993 (1292.0).

Job leavers

Unemployed persons 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 persons 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.

Labour force

For any group, persons who were employed or unemployed, as defined.

Labour force status

A classification of the civilian population aged 15 years and over into employed, unemployed or not in the labour force, as defined. The definitions conform closely to the international standard definitions adopted by the International Conferences of Labour Statisticians.

Lone parent

A person who has no spouse or partner present in the household but who forms a parent-child relationship with at least one dependent or non-dependent child usually resident in the household.

Lone person

A person who makes provision for their food and other essentials for living, without combining with any other person to form part of a multi-person household. They may live in a dwelling on their own or share a dwelling with another individual or family.

Long-term unemployed

Persons unemployed for a period of 52 weeks or more.

Main English speaking countries

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

Marital status

A person is classified as married (husband, wife or partner) if they are living with another person of the same or opposite sex in either a registered or de facto marriage. The not married category comprises persons who live alone or with other family members, those in shared accommodation, and persons who, although reported as married, did not have a spouse or partner who usually lived in the household.

Median duration of unemployment

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

Non-dependent child

A child of a couple or lone parent usually resident in the household, aged over 15 years and who is not a dependent student aged 15-24 years, and who has no partner or child of their own usually resident in the household.

Non-family member

A person who is not related to any other member of the household in which they are living.

Not in the labour force

Persons who were not in the categories employed or unemployed as defined.

Occupation

From August 1996, classified according to the ASCO - Australian Standard Classification of Occupations, Second Edition (Cat. no. 1220.0). See Information Paper: ASCO – Australian Standard Classification of Occupations (1221.0).

One-parent family

A family consisting of a lone parent with at least one dependent or non-dependent child (regardless of age) who is also usually resident in the household.

Other family

Related individuals residing in the same household who do not form a couple or parent-child relationship with any other person in the household and are not attached to a couple or one parent family in the household. If two brothers, for example, are living together and neither is a spouse, a lone parent or a child, then they are classified as other family.

Own-account worker

A person who operates his or her own unincorporated economic enterprise or engages independently in a profession or trade, and hires no employees (this category was formerly entitled self employed).

Participation rate

For any group, the labour force expressed as a percentage of the civilian population aged 15 and over in the same group.

Part-time workers

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

Seasonally adjusted series

A time series of estimates with the estimated effects of normal seasonal variation removed. See paragraphs 37 and 38 of the Explanatory Notes for more detail.

State capital cities

The areas determining the six State capital cities are the Statistical Divisions for those capital cities defined in the Statistical Geography: Volume 1 - Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) (1216.0).

Status in employment

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

Trend series

A smoothed seasonally adjusted series of estimates. See paragraphs 39 to 42 of the Explanatory Notes for more detail.

Unemployed

Persons 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.

Unemployed looking for first full-time job

Unemployed persons looking for full-time work who had never worked full time for two weeks or more.

Unemployed looking for first job

Unemployed persons who had never worked for two weeks or more.

Unemployed looking for full-time work

Unemployed persons 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.

Unemployed looking for part-time work

Unemployed persons 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.

Unemployed persons classified by industry and occupation

Unemployed persons who had worked for two weeks or more in the last two years are classified according to the industry and occupation of their most recent job.

Unemployment rate

For any group, the number of unemployed persons expressed as a percentage of the labour force in the same group.