Tasmania

2016 Census Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people QuickStats
Geography type State/Territory
Area code 6
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 23,580
Male 49.1%
Female 50.9%
Median age 24
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households 11,641
Average people per household 2.9
Median weekly household income $1,079
Median monthly mortgage repayments $1,300
Median weekly rent $220

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People

demographics & education | cultural & language diversity | employment

Demographics & education

People tables are based on a person's place of usual residence on Census night

People Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Aboriginal 21,572 91.5 17,742 90.4 590,062 90.9
Torres Strait Islander 1,118 4.7 1,171 6.0 32,344 5.0
Both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 890 3.8 711 3.6 26,767 4.1

For the 2016 Census in Tasmania, there were 23,580 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. Of these, 49.1% were male and 50.9% were female.

View the data quality statements for: Place of Usual Residence (PURP) Indigenous status (INGP)

Age Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Median age 24 -- 21 -- 23 --
0-4 years 2,439 10.3 2,404 12.3 73,265 11.3
5-14 years 5,351 22.7 4,531 23.1 147,134 22.7
15-24 years 4,301 18.2 3,745 19.1 123,719 19.1
25-34 years 3,037 12.9 2,419 12.3 88,861 13.7
35-44 years 2,446 10.4 2,303 11.7 72,394 11.2
45-54 years 2,563 10.9 2,014 10.3 67,415 10.4
55-64 years 1,986 8.4 1,318 6.7 45,433 7.0
65 years and over 1,455 6.2 889 4.5 30,952 4.8

In Tasmania, the median age of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people was 24 years. Of the Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people 33.1% were children aged 0 to 14 years and 6.2% were people aged 65 years and over.

View the data quality statement for Age (AGEP)
Registered marital status
People aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Married 4,713 29.9 3,861 30.4 105,086 24.5
Separated 755 4.8 536 4.2 19,112 4.5
Divorced 1,490 9.4 1,196 9.4 28,796 6.7
Widowed 501 3.2 404 3.2 13,794 3.2
Never married 8,324 52.7 6,708 52.8 261,980 61.1

In Tasmania, 29.9% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people were married and 14.2% were either divorced or separated.

View the data quality statement for Registered marital status (MSTP)
Social marital status
People aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Registered marriage 4,346 30.0 3,598 30.9 86,716 23.1
De facto marriage 2,275 15.7 1,900 16.3 60,051 16.0
Not married 7,884 54.4 6,147 52.8 228,281 60.9

In Tasmania, 30.0% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people were in a registered marriage and 15.7% were in a de facto marriage.

View the data quality statement for Social marital status (MDCP)
Education attendance Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Pre-school 286 3.2 353 4.6 16,698 6.4
Primary 3,927 43.9 2,974 38.8 97,859 37.5
Secondary 2,259 25.3 1,882 24.5 65,208 25.0
Technical or further education institution 685 7.7 744 9.7 14,227 5.5
University or tertiary institution 525 5.9 350 4.6 15,489 5.9
Other 186 2.1 113 1.5 5,047 1.9
Not stated 1,078 12.1 1,257 16.4 46,428 17.8

Of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania, 37.9% were attending an educational institution. Of these, 43.9% were attending a primary school, 25.3% were attending a secondary school and 13.5% were attending a tertiary or technical institution.

View the data quality statement for Educational Institution Attendee Status (TYSTAP)
Level of highest educational attainment
People aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Bachelor Degree level and above 872 5.5 -- -- 24,911 5.8
Advanced Diploma and Diploma level 816 5.2 -- -- 23,795 5.5
Certificate level IV 535 3.4 -- -- 14,308 3.3
Certificate level III 2,641 16.7 -- -- 56,625 13.2
Year 12 1,954 12.4 -- -- 59,949 14.0
Year 11 1,149 7.3 -- -- 34,674 8.1
Year 10 3,676 23.3 -- -- 77,265 18.0
Certificate level II 35 0.2 -- -- 1,215 0.3
Certificate level I 0 0.0 -- -- 241 0.1
Year 9 or below 2,267 14.3 -- -- 64,604 15.1
No educational attainment 57 0.4 -- -- 4,256 1.0
Not stated 1,347 8.5 -- -- 56,698 13.2

Of people aged 15 and over in Tasmania, 12.4% reported having completed Year 12 as their highest level of educational attainment, 20.1% had completed a Certificate III or IV and 5.2% had completed an Advanced Diploma or Diploma.

2011 benchmarks are not available for this data item.

View the data quality statement for Level of highest educational attainment (HEAP)

Cultural & language diversity

Australian Indigenous language, top responses Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec 37 0.2 34 0.2 347 0.1
Alawa 4 0.0 0 0.0 4 0.0
 null  null  null  null  null  null  null
English only spoken at home 22,871 97.0 19,054 97.1 544,491 83.9

English was the only language spoken at home by 97.0% of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania. The only other responses for language at home were Other Australian Indigenous Languages, nec 0.2% and Alawa 0.0%.

View the data quality statement for Language spoken at home (LANP)
Ancestry, top responses Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Australian 16,536 50.8 13,119 50.5 399,843 45.0
English 8,625 26.5 6,706 25.8 152,758 17.2
Irish 2,196 6.8 1,721 6.6 45,887 5.2
Australian Aboriginal 1,579 4.9 1,109 4.3 140,480 15.8
Scottish 1,310 4.0 920 3.5 30,843 3.5

Respondents had the option of reporting up to two ancestries on their Census form, and this is captured by the Ancestry Multi Response (ANCP) variable used in this table. Therefore, the total responses count will not equal the persons count for this area. Calculated percentages represent a proportion of all responses from people in Tasmania (including those who did not state an ancestry).

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania, the most common ancestries were Australian 50.8%, English 26.5%, Irish 6.8%, Australian Aboriginal 4.9% and Scottish 4.0%.

View the data quality statement for Ancestry (ANCP)

Employment

Employment
People who reported being in the labour force, aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Worked full-time 4,126 46.2 3,564 49.1 106,960 48.0
Worked part-time 3,111 34.8 2,284 31.4 61,049 27.4
Away from work 549 6.1 514 7.1 14,143 6.4
Unemployed 1,152 12.9 902 12.4 40,486 18.2
Not in the labour force 6,547 41.5 5,099 40.2 190,132 44.3

There were 8,938 people who reported being in the labour force in the week before Census night in Tasmania. Of these 46.2% were employed full time, 34.8% were employed part-time and 12.9% were unemployed.

The ABS Labour Force Survey provides the official estimates of Australia's unemployment rate. More information about Census and labour force status is provided in Understanding the Census and Census Data.

For information on the Community Development Programme (CDP) please refer to the Census Data Dictionary. CDP data is available in TableBuilder.

View the data quality statement for Labour force status (LFSP)
Occupation, top responses
Employed people aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Labourers 1,435 18.4 1,117 17.5 27,814 15.3
Community and Personal Service Workers 1,209 15.5 904 14.2 30,991 17.0
Technicians and Trades Workers 1,160 14.9 1,052 16.5 24,399 13.4
Clerical and Administrative Workers 881 11.3 754 11.8 23,174 12.7
Sales Workers 878 11.3 655 10.3 15,791 8.7
Professionals 730 9.4 589 9.3 24,339 13.4
Machinery Operators and Drivers 662 8.5 600 9.4 16,774 9.2
Managers 638 8.2 560 8.8 12,844 7.1

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania, the most common occupations were Labourers 18.4%, Community and Personal Service Workers 15.5%, Technicians and Trades Workers 14.9%, Clerical and Administrative Workers 11.3%, Sales Workers 11.3%, Professionals 9.4%, Machinery Operators and Drivers 8.5% and Managers 8.2%.

View the data quality statement for Occupation (OCCP)
Industry of employment, top responses
Employed people aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Supermarket and Grocery Stores 320 4.2 229 3.7 5,555 3.1
Aged Care Residential Services 270 3.5 181 2.9 3,760 2.1
Takeaway Food Services 209 2.7 161 2.6 4,469 2.5
Other Social Assistance Services 200 2.6 129 2.1 5,302 2.9
Cafes and Restaurants 173 2.3 143 2.3 2,888 1.6

For Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania, the most common industries of employment were Supermarket and Grocery Stores 4.2%, Aged Care Residential Services 3.5%, Takeaway Food Services 2.7%, Other Social Assistance Services 2.6% and Cafes and Restaurants 2.3%.

View the data quality statement for Industry of employment (INDP)
Median weekly incomes
People aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Personal 472 -- 394 -- 441 --
Household 1,079 -- 924 -- 1,203 --

The median weekly personal income for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people in Tasmania was $472 and the median weekly household income was $1,079.

View the data quality statements for: Total personal income (INCP) Total household income (HIND)

Unpaid work
People aged 15 years and over
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Did unpaid domestic work (last week) 10,615 67.2 8,429 66.4 263,334 61.4
Cared for child/children (last two weeks) 5,213 33.0 4,375 34.5 136,079 31.7
Provided unpaid assistance to a person with a disability (last two weeks) 2,279 14.4 1,689 13.3 58,541 13.7
Did voluntary work through an organisation or group (last 12 months) 2,778 17.6 1,843 14.5 63,303 14.8

In Tasmania, of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, 67.2% did unpaid domestic work in the week before the Census. During the two weeks before the Census, 33.0% provided care for children and 14.4% assisted family members or others due to a disability, long term illness or problems related to old age. In the year before the Census, 17.6% of people did voluntary work through an organisation or a group.

View the data quality statements for: Unpaid domestic work (DOMP) Unpaid child care (CHCAREP) Unpaid assistance (UNCAREP) Voluntary work (VOLWP)

Dwellings

dwelling characteristics | dwelling structure

Dwelling characteristics

Dwelling tables exclude visitor only and other non-classifiable households

Dwelling characteristics
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Average number of people per household 2.9 -- 3 -- 3.2 --
Average number of persons per bedroom 1 -- (a) -- 1 --
Average number of registered motor vehicles per dwelling 1.9 -- 1.8 -- 1.7 --

a) There has been change in methodology used to calculate the average number of persons per bedroom. To compare the time series for average number of persons per bedroom please refer to Understanding the Census and Census Data

In Tasmania, for dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, the average household size was 2.9 persons, with 1 persons per bedroom and 1.9 registered motor vehicles per dwelling.

View the data quality statements for: Number of Bedrooms in Private Dwelling (BEDD) Household composition (HHCD) Indigenous household Indicator (INGDWTD)

Housing costs
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Median weekly rent 220 -- 190 -- 250 --
Median monthly mortgage repayments 1,300 -- 1,300 -- 1,660 --

In Tasmania, for dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, the median weekly rent was $220 and the median monthly mortgage repayment was $1,300.

View the data quality statements for: Rent weekly payments (RNTD) Mortgage monthly repayments (MRED) Indigenous household Indicator (INGDWTD)

Family household composition
Counts the types of families within family households at the dwelling level
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
One family household: Couple family with no children 2,431 20.9 1,898 20.2 42,536 16.2
One family household: Couple family with children 3,870 33.3 3,380 35.9 80,803 30.7
One family household: One parent family 2,553 21.9 2,074 22.0 67,528 25.7
One family household: Other family 154 1.3 98 1.0 5,547 2.1
Multiple family household: Couple family with no children 48 0.4 36 0.4 2,223 0.8
Multiple family household: Couple family with children 72 0.6 49 0.5 4,951 1.9
Multiple family household: One parent family 86 0.7 83 0.9 5,768 2.2
Multiple family household: Other family 0 0.0 3 0.0 471 0.2
Other household 2,424 20.8 1,785 19.0 53,195 20.2

In Tasmania, of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander households, 21.3% were a couple family with no children, 33.9% were a couple family with children and 22.7% were a one parent family.

In multiple family households, only the family composition of the primary family is recorded. Other household includes lone person households and group households.

View the data quality statement for Family Household Composition, dwelling level (HCFMD)

Dwelling structure

Dwelling structure
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Separate house 10,382 89.5 8,311 88.3 211,205 80.7
Semi-detached, row or terrace house, townhouse etc 598 5.2 437 4.6 27,017 10.3
Flat or apartment 549 4.7 586 6.2 20,580 7.9
Other dwelling 66 0.6 78 0.8 2,897 1.1

In Tasmania there were 11,641 private dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people. Where a dwelling type was stated, 89.5% were separate houses, 5.2% were semi-detached, row or terrace houses, townhouses etc, 4.7% were flats or apartments and 0.6% were other dwellings.

View the data quality statement for Dwelling structure (STRD)
Tenure
Occupied private dwellings where at least one person was Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Tasmania % Tasmania 2011 % 2011 Australia % Australia
Owned outright 2,070 17.8 1,680 17.8 32,045 12.2
Owned with a mortgage 3,923 33.7 3,173 33.7 68,085 25.9
Rented 5,236 45.0 4,273 45.4 150,832 57.3
Other tenure type 71 0.6 46 0.5 1,888 0.7
Tenure type not stated 337 2.9 247 2.6 10,182 3.9

In Tasmania, of dwellings occupied by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, 17.8% were owned outright, 33.7% were owned with a mortgage and 45.0% were rented.

View the data quality statement for Tenure type (TEND)

Small random adjustments have been made to all cell values to protect the confidentiality of data. These adjustments may cause the sum of rows or columns to differ by small amounts from the table totals. For further information, go to the User Guide for QuickStats.

Data reported for Australia and Other Territories now includes Norfolk Island, following an amendment to the Acts Interpretation Act, 1901. Because Norfolk Island has not previously been included in the Census, any 2011 benchmarks will not include Norfolk Island.