4172.0 - Arts and Culture in Australia: A Statistical Overview, 2011  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 19/12/2011   
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Contents >> Museums >> Employment

EMPLOYMENT

This section covers employment in the museums sector using information drawn from two sources - the 2007-08 Survey of Museums (ABS 2009d) and the 2006 Census of Population and Housing. When making comparisons between these sources, it is important to take into consideration the different scope and reference periods of each. Further information on how the data sources differ can be found in Chapter 5.


Survey of Museums

According to the 2007-08 Survey of Museums, there were 7,856 people employed in museums during the last pay period in June 2008. Of these, 2,509 (32%) worked for art galleries, 2,050 (26%) worked for natural, science and other museums, 1,886 (24%) worked for social history museums and 1,411 (18%) worked for historic properties.

This survey also found that 23,426 people worked as volunteers for museums during the month of June 2008.

8.7 EMPLOYED PERSONS AND VOLUNTEERS, By museum type - end June 2008

Employed persons
Volunteers(a)
Managers, administrators and clerical support workers
Conservators
Curators
Museum or gallery attendants
Security officers and other employed persons
Total(b)
Total(b)
no.
no.
no.
no.
no.
no.
no.

Art museum/gallery
851
95
347
^427
790
2 509
^3 741
Other museums
Social history
720
^63
^236
^389
^477
1 886
^12 752
Historic properties/sites
389
21
^127
497
376
1 411
^4 898
Natural, science and other
796
141
351
355
406
2 050
^2 035
Total other museums
1 906
225
715
1 241
1 259
5 347
19 685
Total(b)
2 756
320
1 062
1 668
2 050
7 856
23 426

^ estimate has a relative standard error of 10% to less than 25% and should be used with caution
(a) Information on volunteers was collected as an 'end-of-June 2008 snapshot', whereas information about employees was collected during the last pay period in June 2008.
(b) Where figures have been rounded, discrepancies may occur between the sum of component items and the total.
Source: Museums, Australia, 2007-08 (cat. no. 8560.0)



Census of Population and Housing

The 2006 Census of Population and Housing presented a different perspective, with 6,412 people reporting that their main job (i.e. where they worked the most hours) in the week before Census Night was in the museums industry. Of these, 41% were employed in cultural occupations such as museum and gallery attendants, curators, technicians or conservators. The 59% of museum employees not in cultural occupations included specialist managers, project and program administrators, security officers, general clerks, and education officers.

8.8 PERSONS EMPLOYED IN MUSEUMS INDUSTRY(a)(b), By occupation - 2006

Number
%

Cultural occupations
Museum or gallery guides
730
11.4
Museum or gallery curators
589
9.2
Arts administrators or managers
292
4.6
Conservators
171
2.7
Museum or gallery technicians
116
1.8
Other cultural occupations
721
11.2
Total cultural occupations
2 619
40.8
Other occupations
3 793
59.2
Total occupations
6 412
100.0

(a) Cells in this table have been randomly adjusted to avoid the release of confidential data.
(b) In their main job in the week before Census Night.
Source: ABS data available on request, Census of Population and Housing, 2006.


The Census identified an additional 1,136 people working in a museum-related occupation, but not in the museums industry (e.g. a conservator working in a library). There were 315 museum or gallery guides, 380 museum or gallery curators, 212 conservators and 129 museum and gallery technicians working in other industries.







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