Reference period
The JVS reference date is the third Friday of the middle month of the quarter, i.e. February, May, August and November. Job vacancies data relate to the number of vacancies which exist on the actual survey reference date only, and not for a monthly or quarterly period.
Scope and coverage
The survey covers all employing organisations in Australia (public and private sectors), except:
- enterprises primarily engaged in agriculture, forestry and fishing;
- private households employing staff; and
- foreign embassies, consulates, etc.
All job vacancies of organisations covered in the survey are in scope, except those:
- in the Australian permanent defence forces; and
- located outside Australia.
Collection method
Details of the total number of job vacancies available for immediate filling on the survey reference date are obtained on a quarterly basis from selected businesses. Data are collected via online electronic collection, and/or telephone interviews.
Follow-up procedures are in place to obtain information from respondents who do not lodge a completed form by the due date. The target minimum response is 95% for the survey as a whole, and approximately 90% for each state and/or industry.
Sample design
The sample is selected from the ABS Business Register (ABSBR) which is a list of businesses and organisations operating in Australia primarily based on registrations to the Australian Taxation Office's (ATO) Pay-As-You-Go Withholding (PAYGW) scheme. The population is updated quarterly to take account of new businesses, businesses that have ceased employing, changes in industry and employment levels and other general business changes.
A probability sample of statistical units (employing businesses) is drawn from the ABSBR. The statistical unit for the survey comprises all the activities of an employer in a particular state or territory based on the Australian Business Number (ABN) unit or Type of Activity Unit (TAU). Each statistical unit is classified to an industry which reflects the predominant activity of the business. Variables used to stratify the survey frame are:
- public/private sector;
- industry;
- state/territory; and
- employment size – the ranges used vary between states/territories and industries.
Statistical units with benchmark employment greater than a set cut off (this cut off will vary for different states/territories) are completely enumerated. Strata with a very small number of statistical units may also be completely enumerated, but such strata may become sampled strata if the number of units increases sufficiently. Within each stratum, statistical units are selected with equal probability.
Sample selection is constrained by ensuring that there is minimum overlap with other labour-related business surveys.
For details on the ABS Business Register and ABS economic units model, see the Methods used in ABS Business Surveys chapter in Labour Statistics: Concepts, Sources and Methods.
Sample size
Approximately 5,500 statistical units are selected in the sample to yield a live sample of approximately 5,130 units. The sample is allocated optimally across the strata using a technique designed to minimise the variance of job vacancies estimates at both the national and state/territory level.
Sample rotation
The sample is updated each quarter to reflect changes in the ABS Business Register. Sample rotation is implemented for the majority of strata, but is not implemented where the population of a stratum is so small that units rotating out of the sample would be rotated back in after only a short interval. Approximately 8% of the sample for the non-completely enumerated strata is replaced each quarter.