• Summary
• Downloads
• Explanatory Notes
• Related Information
• Past Releases

EMPLOYMENT

Census of Population and Housing

Data on the number of people involved in design can be obtained from several sources.

The 2006 Census of Population and Housing found that there were 30,086 people whose main job in the week prior to Census Night 2006 was in the Architectural services industry. The Census also found that over half of those in the industry worked as either Architects (10,854 people) or Architectural draftspersons (5,142 people).

Advertising services employed 27,647 people, with the majority (71%) in non-cultural occupations. Graphic designers were less than 7% of employees.

Nearly half (48%) of those employed in Other specialised design services were Graphic designers (6,919 people) or Signwriters (2,012 people). The remaining employees were distributed amongst a large number of both cultural and non-cultural occupations.

15.3 PERSONS EMPLOYED IN SELECTED DESIGN INDUSTRIES(a)(b), By occupation - 2006
			Number	%
	Architectural services
		Architects	10 854	36.1
		Architectural draftspersons	5 142	17.1
		Urban and regional planners	1 417	4.7
		Landscape architects	1 392	4.6
		Interior designers	1 133	3.8
		Graphic designers	150	0.5
		Other cultural occupations	285	0.9
		Total cultural occupations	20 373	67.7
		Other occupations	9 713	32.3
		Total occupations	30 086	100.0
	Advertising services
		Advertising specialists	2 328	8.4
		Graphic designers	1 881	6.8
		Media producers (excluding video)	973	3.5
		Copywriters	510	1.8
		Photographers	354	1.3
		Graphic pre-press trades workers	223	0.8
		Other cultural occupations	1 823	6.6
		Total cultural occupations	8 092	29.3
		Other occupations	19 555	70.7
		Total occupations	27 647	100.0
	Other specialised design services
		Graphic designers	6 919	37.1
		Signwriters	2 012	10.8
		Interior designers	1 851	9.9
		Graphic pre-press trades workers	218	1.2
		Media producers (excluding video)	197	1.1
		Illustrators	192	1.0
		Other cultural occupations	1 518	8.1
		Total cultural occupations	12 907	69.3
		Other occupations	5 725	30.7
		Total occupations	18 632	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.

15.4 PERSONS INVOLVED IN DESIGN, By selected characteristics - 12 months ending April 2007
		Male	Female	Persons
		'000	'000	'000
Involvement part of main job held last week(a)		157.3	123.8	281.1
Involvement not part of main job held last week(b)		84.9	93.2	178.1
Annual income from design activity(c)
	Goods and services only	**4.2	**3.9	*8.0
	Less than $5,000	37.5	49.6	87.1
	$5,000 to $39, 999	44.5	45.0	89.5
	$40,000 or more	79.6	41.9	121.5
Type of design activity undertaken
	Graphic design	99.6	85.1	184.7
	Fashion design	*5.3	32.2	37.5
	Architecture	47.2	18.8	66.0
	Advertising	93.8	98.2	192.0
	Other design activities	73.8	53.6	127.3
Total(d)		242.3	217.0	459.2
* estimate has a relative standard error of 25% to 50% and should be used with caution
** estimate has a relative standard error greater than 50% and is considered too unreliable for general use
(a) Main job held in the week prior to interview. If the person held multiple jobs during this week, main job refers to the job in which the most hours were worked.
(b) Excludes persons who were unemployed or not in the labour force.
(c) Excludes persons who did not state the amount of payment they received.
(d) Components may not add up to the total number of people undertaing design activities as some may have undertaken more than one design activity.
Source: ABS data available on request, Survey of Work in Selected Culture and Leisure Activities, 2007.