JOB SEARCH EXPERIENCE SURVEY

CONTACT

Labour Market Section
Australian Bureau of Statistics, Canberra
Telephone (02) 6252 7206

DESCRIPTION

The Job Search Experience Survey examines the experiences of unemployed people in seeking work, in terms of the steps they have taken to find work and the difficulties they have encountered in finding work. It also provides information about employed people who started their current job in the previous 12 months, the steps they took to attain work, and their current job details. Demographic information is provided for both of these groups. The Job Search Experience Survey is conducted as a supplement to the monthly Labour Force Survey (LFS) in July each year.

Scope

The survey relates only to people who were unemployed in July; and to people employed in July of the reference year, who started their current job in the previous 12 months. The scope of the LFS is restricted to persons aged 15 years and over, and excludes the following people:

• members of the Australian permanent defence forces;
• certain diplomatic personnel of overseas governments, customarily excluded from the census and estimated populations;
• overseas residents in Australia; and
• members of non-Australian defence forces (and their dependants).

The survey is conducted in both urban and rural areas in all states and territories, but excludes people living in very remote parts of Australia. Students at boarding schools, patients in hospitals, residents of homes (e.g. retirement homes, homes for people with disabilities), and inmates of prisons are also excluded.

Reference Period

July

Frequency of Collection

Annual

Method of Collection

This survey is conducted throughout Australia in July, as a LFS supplementary survey. Respondents to the LFS who fell within the scope of the supplementary survey were asked further questions. Trained interviewers conduct most interviews (70%) over the telephone, and the remainder are conducted face-to-face.

DISSEMINATION

Release schedule

The results of supplementary surveys are released approximately six months after the survey reference period.

Publications

Job Search Experience, Australia, (ABS cat. no. 6222.0)

Geography

Data are available for Australia, states and territories.

Data service

Customised data are available on request; this is a charged service.

DATA ITEMS

Demographic
State or territory of usual residence
Area of usual residence
Region of usual residence
Sex
Age group
Marital status
Relationship in household
Country of birth
Year of arrival in Australia

Education
Highest year of school completed
Level of highest non-school qualification
Whether highest qualification obtained overseas or in Australia
Level of highest educational attainment

Job Details
Jobs in previous 12 months
Steps taken to find work
Duration of current period of unemployment
Registered job seekers
Difficulty in finding work
Last job
Current job
Leave entitlements
employment status

Historical Data

Job Search Experience was first conducted in 2002. It replaced both the annual survey of Job Search Experience of Unemployed Persons, conducted from 1976 to 2001, and the survey of Successful and Unsuccessful Job Search Experience, conducted irregularly from 1982 to 2001. These were published as Job Search Experience of Unemployed Persons, Australia (ABS cat. no. 6222.0), and Successful and Unsuccessful Job Search Experience, Australia (ABS cat. no. 6245.0).