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EXPLANATORY NOTES


INTRODUCTION

1 The statistics in this survey were compiled from data collected in the Labour Mobility survey that was conducted throughout Australia in February 2006 as a supplement to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) monthly Labour Force Survey (LFS). Respondents to the LFS who fell within the scope of the supplementary survey were asked further questions.

2 The publication Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0) contains information about survey design, sample redesign, scope, coverage and population benchmarks relevant to the monthly LFS, which also apply to supplementary surveys. It also contains definitions of demographic and labour force characteristics, and information about telephone interviewing which are relevant to both the monthly LFS and supplementary surveys.

CONCEPTS, SOURCES AND METHODS

3 The conceptual framework used in Australia's LFS aligns closely with the standards and guidelines set out in Resolutions of the International Conference of Labour Statisticians. Descriptions of the underlying concepts and structure of Australia's labour force statistics, and the sources and methods used in compiling these estimates, are presented in Labour Statistics: Concepts, Sources and Methods (cat. no. 6102.0.55.001) which is available on the ABS web site <https://www.abs.gov.au> (Methods, Classifications, Concepts and Standards).

SCOPE

4 The scope of the LFS was restricted to people aged 15 years and over and excludes the following people:

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

6 This supplementary survey was conducted in both urban and rural areas in all states and territories, but excluded approximately 120,000 people living in very remote parts of Australia who would otherwise have been within the scope of the survey. The exclusion of these people will have only a minor impact on any aggregate estimates that are produced for individual states and territories, except the Northern Territory where such people account for around 23% of the population.

COVERAGE

7 The estimates in this survey relate to people covered by the survey in February 2006. In the LFS, coverage rules are applied which aim to ensure that each person is associated with only one dwelling, and hence has only one chance of selection in the survey. See Labour Force, Australia (cat. no. 6202.0) for more details.

SAMPLE SIZE

8 Supplementary surveys are not always conducted on the full LFS sample. Since August 1994 the sample for supplementary surveys has been restricted to no more than seven-eighths of the LFS sample.

9 The initial sample for the February 2006 LFS consisted of 41,511 private dwelling households and special dwelling units. Of the 33,958 private dwelling households and special dwelling units that remained in the survey after sample loss (e.g. households selected in the survey which had no residents in scope for the LFS, vacant or derelict dwellings and dwellings under construction), approximately 31,616 or 93.1% were fully responding to the Labour Mobility survey. The number of completed interviews obtained from these private dwellings and special dwelling units (after taking into account scope, coverage and subsampling exclusions) was 35,637.

RELIABILITY OF THE ESTIMATES

10 Estimates in this publication are subject to sampling and non-sampling errors:

• Sampling error is the difference between the published estimate and the value that would have been produced if all dwellings had been included in the survey. For more information see the Technical Note.
• Non-sampling errors are inaccuracies that occur because of imperfections in reporting by respondents and interviewers, and errors made in coding and processing data. These inaccuracies may occur in any enumeration, whether it be a full count or a sample. Every effort is made to reduce the non-sampling error to a minimum by careful design of questionnaires, intensive training and supervision of interviewers and effective processing procedures.

CLASSIFICATIONS USED

12 Country of birth data are classified according to the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC), 1998 (cat. no. 1269.0).

13 Occupation data are classified according to the ASCO - Australian Standard Classification of Occupations, Second Edition, 1997 (cat. no. 1220.0.30.001).

14 Industry data are classified according to the Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC), 1993 (cat. no. 1292.0.15.001).

15 Educational attainment data are classified according to Australian Standard Classification of Education (ASCED) (cat. no. 1272.0).

COMPARABILITY OF TIME SERIES

16 Revisions are made to population benchmarks for the LFS after each five-yearly Census of Population and Housing. The last such revision was made in February 2004 to take account of the results of the 2001 Census of Population and Housing. Estimates from supplementary surveys conducted from and including February 2004 are therefore based on the revised population benchmarks.

17 The scope of the Labour Mobility survey was expanded in February 2006 to include all people aged 15 years and over. This change has resulted in an extra 73,300 people coming within the scope of this survey. The survey was also redesigned and data items and populations that referred to locality, which were included in the February 2004 and previous surveys, are not presented in this publication as the information was not collected in the February 2006 survey.

18 Only changes in employer/business are included in Table 1, as this is the only type of job change which is common to February 2006 and previous surveys, because in Labour Mobility surveys prior to 2006 changes in locality in the last 12 months were also included as a job change. As a result of the changes made to the 2006 Labour Mobility survey, users need to exercise care when comparing the estimates in this publication with previous releases.

COMPARABILITY WITH MONTHLY LFS STATISTICS

19 Due to differences in the scope and sample size of this supplementary survey and that of the monthly LFS, the estimation procedure may lead to some small variations between labour force estimates from this survey and those from the LFS.

PREVIOUS SURVEYS

20 Results of similar surveys, conducted in November 1972, February 1975 and February 1976, annually from February 1979 to February 1992, then biennially from February 1994 to February 2004, were published in Labour Mobility, Australia (cat. no. 6209.0).

PREVIOUS REVISIONS TO HISTORICAL DATA

21 Historical estimates of the number and proportion of people who were job mobile for the periods 1990 to 1996 were revised in the 1998 publication. Previously published estimates for reference periods from 1990 to 1996 will still contain incorrectly derived data. If you require further information about these revisions, please contact the area listed on the front cover of this release.

NEXT SURVEY

22 The ABS plans to conduct this survey again in February 2008.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

23 ABS publications draw extensively on information provided freely by individuals, businesses, governments and other organisations. Their continued cooperation is very much appreciated: without it, the wide range of statistics published by the ABS would not be available. Information received by the ABS is treated in strict confidence as required by the Census and Statistics Act 1905.

RELATED PUBLICATIONS

24 Other ABS publications which may be of interest include:

• Australian Labour Market Statistics, (cat. no. 6105.0)
• Labour Force, Australia, (cat. no. 6202.0)
• Labour Force Experience, Australia, (cat. no. 6206.0 )
• Persons Not in the Labour Force, Australia, (cat. no. 6220.0)
• Job Search Experience, Australia, (cat. no. 6222.0)
• Underemployed Workers, Australia, (cat. no. 6265.0)