8 May 2020
PDF version [414KB]
Geoff
Gilfillan
Statistics and Mapping
Executive
summary
- There were just over 2.6 million casual workers employed in
Australia in August 2019 who accounted for 24.4 per cent of all employees. Tasmania
had the highest casual employee share of total employees in August 2019 (at
28.3 per cent) while the Northern Territory had the lowest casual share at 21.2
per cent.
- Retail trade and Accommodation and food services account for a
large proportion of all casual workers across Australia. Large numbers of
casual workers are also employed in social assistance services, construction,
health, education, road transport and other service industries.
-
The predominant occupations for casual workers are sales
assistants and salespersons, hospitality workers, carers and aides, sales
support workers and food preparation assistants.
- Short-term policy measures have been introduced by the Australian
Government to protect people who work in businesses and industry sectors
affected by decisions to reduce social gatherings to slow the spread of
COVID-19. These include:
- A
JobKeeper Payment of $1,500 per fortnight paid to employees who have lost their
job due to significantly reduced sales turnover at their place of employment.
- A
JobSeeker Payment is available for short-term casual workers who have lost
their job and satisfy eligibility requirements. The payment includes a $550
fortnightly Coronavirus supplement.
- In August 2019 just over one million casual employees had been
with their current employer for less than 12 months. Just under 80 per cent of
this group expected to be with their current employer in a year’s time.
- 46.3
per cent of casual employees in Accommodation and Food Services had been with
their current employer for less than 12 months along with 36.8 per cent of
casual employees in Retail Trade and 33.9 per cent of employees in Arts and
Recreation Services.
- Young people are more likely to be short-term casuals.
- 489,300
or 26.4 per cent of employees aged 15 to 24 years were casual workers who had
been with their current employer for less than 12 months. This compares with 294,600
or only 6.5 per cent of employees aged 25 years and over.
- Young
people accounted for 46.0 per cent of short-term casual employees in August
2019 which compares with their 17.4 per cent share of all employees.
Contents
Executive summary
Introduction
Protections provided to casual workers
following the COVID-19 outbreak
What is a casual worker and where are
they employed?
Duration of casual employees with
current employer
Conclusion
Introduction
This statistical snapshot builds on the
earlier version released in late March 2020 by including information on
Government policy responses to COVID-19 in the form of the new JobsSeeker and
JobKeeper payments. The snapshot also provides information on how casual
workers will be protected if the business in which they work has been affected
by decisions to limit social gatherings and enforce social distancing.
Protections
provided to casual workers following the COVID-19 outbreak
The Government has introduced temporary measures to protect
the incomes of workers during the COVID-19 outbreak. These include:
- the JobKeeper Payment wage subsidy to enable businesses
significantly affected by the COVID-19 outbreak to continue paying their
employees. The subsidy will cover casual employees who have been employed for
12 months or more.
- a $550 per fortnight Coronavirus Supplement for recipients of
JobSeeker Payment and other eligible payment categories. This will provide extra
support for some casual employees who experience a loss of pay due the outbreak
and are not eligible for the JobKeeper Payment.
The
JobKeeper Payment
The JobKeeper Payment allows eligible employers to claim a
fortnightly payment of $1,500 per eligible employee from 30 March 2020 for a
maximum of six months. These employers can claim the payment for both part-time
and full-time employees. However, they can only claim the payment for casual
employees if they have employed the person for 12 months or more and the
employee is not a permanent employee of another employer.[1]
Around 59 per cent of casual employees have been with their current employer
for 12 months or more (see table 5).
Employers eligible for the JobKeeper Payment include
businesses:
- with a turnover of less than $1 billion and their turnover will
be reduced by more than 30 per cent relative to a comparable period a year ago
(of at least a month); or
- with a turnover of $1 billion or more and their turnover will be
reduced by more than 50 per cent relative to a comparable period a year ago (of
at least a month); and
- not subject to the Major Bank Levy.[2]
Charities registered
with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission will be eligible
for the JobSeeker Payment if they estimate their GST turnover has fallen or
will likely fall by 15 per cent or more relative to a comparable period. This
separate measure of revenue decline does not apply to universities and
non-government schools registered as charities.
Casual workers that have been with their current employer
for less than 12 months and lost their job due to COVID-19 and satisfy other
eligibility requirements would be eligible for the JobSeeker Payment and
Coronavirus Supplement.
Income
support measures
Casual workers who lose work as a result of the COVID-19
outbreak may be able to take advantage of temporary changes to the income
support system. For example, from 25 March 2020 expanded eligibility to access
the JobSeeker Payment (formerly Newstart Allowance) and Youth Allowance will be
provided for a six month period to those who are stood down from their jobs,
sole traders, self-employed persons, casual or contract workers whose income
has reduced as a result of COVID-19, and those who need to care for someone
affected by coronavirus.[3]
Normally, a person must be unemployed or temporarily unable
to work due to illness or a medical condition to be eligible for these payments.
Some waiting periods will be waived in order to speed up receipt of the allowance.[4]
The assets test will be waived and an exemption from mutual obligation
requirements to look for work has been put in place until 27 April 2020.[5]
The Government also established a new, time-limited
Coronavirus Supplement to be paid at a rate of $550 per fortnight. This
supplement will be paid to both existing and new recipients of the JobSeeker
Payment and other eligible payment categories and will be paid from 27 April
2020.[6]
Casual
employees in the Australian Public Service
The Australian Public Service Commission (APSC) has extended
paid sick leave entitlements to cover more than 7,800 casual APS employees[7]who
may be forced to miss work due to being diagnosed with COVID-19 or being forced
to self-isolate due to exposure to the virus.
Due to the current extraordinary circumstances of the
outbreak and the potential widespread impact, paid arrangements should also be
extended to casual employees who are required to isolate due to COVID-19
exposure or who contract the virus. This exceptional measure is in place for
the duration of the pandemic until advised by the Australian Government
Department of Health. This is to minimise any incentive for employees to attend
the workplace against medical advice and to minimise exposure to the public. Agencies
should ensure that paid arrangements to enable absence, such as paid
Discretionary Leave (or equivalent), are in place to allow casual employees to
self-isolate when required to do so by the relevant health authority. [8]
The APSC has not extended the paid leave provisions to
contractors or labour hire employees providing services to the Australian
Government.
What is a
casual worker and where are they employed?
Casual workers do not have access to paid leave entitlements
(such as paid holiday and sick leave)[9],
but are paid a loading, set usually between 20 and 25 per cent (depending upon
the Award or Enterprise Agreement), on top of their hourly wage rate, to
compensate them for the lack of access to paid leave entitlements.
There were just over 2.6 million casual workers employed in
Australia in August 2019. The casual share of total employees increased
slightly from 23.5 per cent in August 2012 to 25.1 per cent in August 2019 but
has since fallen marginally to 24.4 per cent in August 2019.
Figure
1—casual share of total employees in Australia, 2004 to 2019
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, Table 1b.3
Just over three quarters (75.6 percent) of employees in
Australia in August 2019 were employees with access to paid leave entitlements
or permanent employees.
The following table shows Tasmania had the highest casual
employee share of total employees in August 2019 (at 28.3 per cent). This
compares with a 21.2 per cent casual share in the Northern Territory and 21.5
per cent in the Australian Capital Territory.
Table 1—casual
employees by State/Territory, August 2019
| State/Territory |
Number of casual
employees |
Permanent
employees |
Total employees |
Casual share of
total employees |
| |
(‘000) |
(%) |
| New South Wales |
831.4 |
2 613.1 |
3 444.5 |
24.1 |
| Victoria |
651.9 |
2 161.8 |
2 813.7 |
23.2 |
| Queensland |
530.4 |
1 544.5 |
2 075.0 |
25.6 |
| South Australia |
185.8 |
514.8 |
700.6 |
26.5 |
| Western Australia |
274.6 |
845.0 |
1 119.6 |
24.5 |
| Tasmania |
59.1 |
149.9 |
209.0 |
28.3 |
| Northern Territory |
24.4 |
91.0 |
115.4 |
21.2 |
| Aust. Capital Territory |
44.1 |
161.1 |
205.2 |
21.5 |
| Australia |
2 601.8 |
8 081.2 |
10 683.0 |
24.4 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, Table 1b.3
Retail and Acommodation and food services account for a
large proportion of all casual workers across Australia. However, there are
large numbers of casual workers employed in social assistance services,
construction, health, education, road transport and other service industries.
Table 2 ranks the number of casual workers in each sector
from highest to lowest and has been restricted to those sectors that employ
10,000 casual workers or more.
Table 2—ranking
of casual employees by industry sector in Australia, August 2019
| Industry sector of main job (Australia) |
Number of casual
employees |
Permanent
employees |
Total employees |
Casual share of
total employees |
| |
(‘000) |
(%) |
| Food and Beverage Services |
467.3 |
258.4 |
725.7 |
64.4 |
| Other Store-Based Retailing |
230.4 |
363.3 |
593.7 |
38.8 |
| Food Retailing |
163.0 |
205.1 |
368.1 |
44.3 |
| Social Assistance Services[10] |
125.9 |
307.5 |
433.4 |
29.0 |
| Construction Services |
125.1 |
303.4 |
428.5 |
29.2 |
| Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (Except
Computer System Design and Related Services) |
94.9 |
564.4 |
659.3 |
14.4 |
| Medical and Other Health Care Services |
90.6 |
304.8 |
395.4 |
22.9 |
| Preschool and School Education |
90.2 |
574.7 |
664.9 |
13.6 |
| Road Transport |
65.1 |
159.6 |
224.7 |
29.0 |
| Personal and Other Services |
58.3 |
116.6 |
174.9 |
33.3 |
| Building Cleaning, Pest Control and Other Support Services |
58.2 |
81.8 |
140.0 |
41.6 |
| Administrative Services |
57.6 |
148.9 |
206.5 |
27.9 |
| Food Product Manufacturing |
57.2 |
125.4 |
182.6 |
31.3 |
| Sports and Recreation Activities |
55.8 |
52.7 |
108.5 |
51.4 |
| Building Construction |
50.2 |
162.1 |
212.3 |
23.6 |
| Adult, Community and Other Education |
50.1 |
91 |
141.1 |
35.5 |
| Tertiary Education |
48.5 |
192.9 |
241.4 |
20.1 |
| Hospitals |
48.2 |
425 |
473.2 |
10.2 |
| Public Administration |
46.2 |
532.2 |
578.4 |
8.0 |
| Residential Care Services |
44.5 |
214.5 |
259 |
17.2 |
| Agriculture |
43.4 |
60.4 |
103.8 |
41.8 |
| Accommodation |
33.7 |
42.4 |
76.1 |
44.3 |
| Repair and Maintenance |
30.8 |
136.6 |
167.4 |
18.4 |
| Postal and Courier Pick-up and Delivery Services |
27.1 |
42.2 |
69.3 |
39.1 |
| Public Order, Safety and Regulatory Services |
25.7 |
156.0 |
181.7 |
14.1 |
| Property Operators and Real Estate Services |
23.5 |
106.2 |
129.7 |
18.1 |
| Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction |
19.8 |
71.9 |
91.7 |
21.6 |
| Finance |
16.7 |
156.2 |
172.9 |
9.7 |
| Other Goods Wholesaling |
16.2 |
54.7 |
70.9 |
22.8 |
| Grocery, Liquor and Tobacco Product Wholesaling |
13.8 |
42.9 |
56.7 |
24.3 |
| Warehousing and Storage Services |
13.8 |
50.6 |
64.4 |
21.4 |
| Metal Ore Mining |
13.6 |
96.1 |
109.7 |
12.4 |
| Basic Material Wholesaling |
13.1 |
69.1 |
82.2 |
15.9 |
| Primary Metal and Metal Product Manufacturing |
11.9 |
51.9 |
63.8 |
18.7 |
| Motion Picture and Sound Recording Activities |
11.5 |
15.1 |
26.6 |
43.2 |
| Fuel Retailing |
10.9 |
51.4 |
62.3 |
38.1 |
| Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing |
10.9 |
17.7 |
28.6 |
17.5 |
| Computer System Design and Related Services |
10.4 |
203.6 |
214 |
4.9 |
| Machinery and Equipment Manufacturing |
10.3 |
83.5 |
93.8 |
11.0 |
| Waste Collection, Treatment and Disposal Services |
10.1 |
34.5 |
44.6 |
22.6 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
The following table show in which occupations casual workers
are predominantly employed including occupations such as Sales assistants and
salespersons, Hospitality workers, Carers and aides, Sales support workers and
Food preparation assistants. The table ranks the number of casual workers in
each occupational category from highest to lowest, and has been restricted to
occupations that have 10,000 casual workers or more.
Table 3—ranking
of casual employees by occupation in Australia, August 2019
| Occupation of main job (Australia) |
Number of casual
employees |
Permanent
employees |
Total employees |
Casual share of
total employees |
| |
(‘000) |
(%) |
| Sales Assistants and Salespersons |
274.5 |
315.6 |
590.1 |
46.3 |
| Hospitality Workers |
229.9 |
65.3 |
295.2 |
78.0 |
| Carers and Aides |
179.6 |
387.1 |
566.7 |
31.7 |
| Sales Support Workers |
149.3 |
100.8 |
250.1 |
59.7 |
| Food Preparation Assistants |
123.7 |
67.8 |
191.5 |
64.6 |
| Road and Rail Drivers |
112.6 |
181.0 |
293.6 |
38.9 |
| Education Professionals |
101.3 |
491.1 |
592.4 |
17.0 |
| Cleaners and Laundry Workers |
95.8 |
136.7 |
232.5 |
41.5 |
| Other Labourers |
91.5 |
103.5 |
195.0 |
46.6 |
| Sports and Personal Service Workers |
87.0 |
65.8 |
152.8 |
55.8 |
| Inquiry Clerks and Receptionists |
80.6 |
230.1 |
310.7 |
26.2 |
| Health Professionals |
66.5 |
483.9 |
550.4 |
12.1 |
| Construction and Mining Labourers |
65.5 |
78.6 |
144.1 |
46.4 |
| Factory Process Workers |
62.9 |
134.9 |
197.8 |
31.6 |
| Construction Trades Workers |
58.4 |
151.4 |
209.8 |
27.8 |
| Food Trades Workers |
53.3 |
115.4 |
168.7 |
31.4 |
| General Clerical Workers |
49.6 |
244.8 |
294.4 |
17.0 |
| Storepersons |
48.2 |
84.2 |
132.4 |
35.8 |
| Business, Human Resource and Marketing Professionals |
45.5 |
591.5 |
637.0 |
7.1 |
| Automotive and Engineering Trades Workers |
43.3 |
264.4 |
307.7 |
13.9 |
| Design, Engineering, Science and Transport Professionals |
42.2 |
336.6 |
378.8 |
11.2 |
| Hospitality, Retail and Service Managers |
42.1 |
284.7 |
326.8 |
12.9 |
| Farm, Forestry and Garden Workers |
40.1 |
52.1 |
92.2 |
45.1 |
| Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers |
38.6 |
51.4 |
90.0 |
42.2 |
| Numerical Clerks |
38.1 |
269.1 |
307.2 |
12.5 |
| Mobile Plant Operators |
34.2 |
97.3 |
131.5 |
25.6 |
| Other Clerical and Administrative Workers |
33.3 |
210.7 |
244.0 |
13.5 |
| Other Technicians and Trades Workers |
31.6 |
103.3 |
134.9 |
23.5 |
| Engineering, ICT and Science Technicians |
29.2 |
206.8 |
236 |
12.4 |
| Legal, Social and Welfare Professionals |
27.5 |
183.9 |
211.4 |
12.9 |
| ICT Professionals |
26.7 |
260.0 |
286.7 |
9.2 |
| Specialist Managers |
24.6 |
590.8 |
615.4 |
4.0 |
| Machine and Stationary Plant Operators |
24.3 |
140.0 |
164.3 |
14.7 |
| Electro-technology and Telecommunications Trades Workers |
22.3 |
168.7 |
191.0 |
11.6 |
| Health and Welfare Support Workers |
22.0 |
101.6 |
123.6 |
17.7 |
| Protective Service Workers |
20.5 |
122.6 |
143.1 |
14.2 |
| Sales Representatives and Agents |
18.4 |
133.5 |
151.9 |
12.1 |
| Office Managers and Program Administrators |
16.7 |
210.4 |
227.1 |
7.4 |
| Clerical and Office Support Workers |
14.5 |
49.4 |
63.9 |
22.9 |
| Arts and Media Professionals |
12.2 |
41.6 |
53.8 |
23.4 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
Table 4 shows where casual employees were working by region
in Australia as at August 2019. Estimates shown in grey shading have Relative
Standard Errors (RSEs) of between 25 and 50 per cent. The Australian Bureau of
Statistics advises these estimates should be used with caution.[11]
Table
4—casual employees by region in Australia, August 2019
| Region of usual residence – Statistical Area Level 4 (SA4) |
Number of casual employees
|
Permanent
employees |
Total employees |
Casual share of
total employees |
| |
(‘000) |
(%) |
| Sydney - Baulkham Hills and Hawkesbury |
31.9 |
89.3 |
121.2 |
26.3 |
| Sydney - Blacktown |
41.8 |
141.6 |
183.4 |
22.8 |
| Sydney - City and Inner South |
45.5 |
144.9 |
190.4 |
23.9 |
| Sydney - Eastern Suburbs |
31.0 |
103.5 |
134.5 |
23.0 |
| Sydney - Inner South West |
70.5 |
202 |
272.5 |
25.9 |
| Sydney - Inner West |
37.9 |
126.7 |
164.6 |
23.0 |
| Sydney - North Sydney and Hornsby |
41.2 |
170.6 |
211.8 |
19.5 |
| Sydney - Northern Beaches |
22.5 |
76.3 |
98.8 |
22.8 |
| Sydney - Outer South West |
24.8 |
93.3 |
118.1 |
21.0 |
| Sydney - Outer West and Blue Mountains |
28.3 |
124.0 |
152.3 |
18.6 |
| Sydney - Parramatta |
54.6 |
153.9 |
208.5 |
26.2 |
| Sydney - Ryde |
28.3 |
76.2 |
104.5 |
27.1 |
| Sydney - South West |
38.6 |
131.5 |
170.1 |
22.7 |
| Sydney - Sutherland |
20.8 |
98.6 |
119.4 |
17.4 |
| Central Coast |
28.3 |
106.5 |
134.8 |
21.0 |
| Total Greater Capital City - NSW |
540.6 |
1 838.0 |
2 378.6 |
22.7 |
| Capital Region |
28.9 |
69.2 |
98.1 |
29.5 |
| NSW - Central West |
23.6 |
49.2 |
72.8 |
32.4 |
| Coffs Harbour - Grafton |
11.2 |
25.5 |
36.7 |
30.5 |
| Far West and Orana |
12.0 |
25.9 |
37.9 |
31.7 |
| Hunter Valley exc Newcastle |
26.5 |
89.7 |
116.2 |
22.8 |
| Illawarra |
27.0 |
94.9 |
121.9 |
22.1 |
| Mid North Coast |
19.0 |
48.2 |
67.2 |
28.3 |
| Murray |
14.8 |
33.2 |
48.0 |
30.8 |
| New England and North West |
19.6 |
58.0 |
77.6 |
25.3 |
| Newcastle and Lake Macquarie |
48.0 |
128.8 |
176.8 |
27.1 |
| Richmond - Tweed |
28.3 |
58.9 |
87.2 |
32.5 |
| Riverina |
20.9 |
59.5 |
80.4 |
26.0 |
| Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven |
14.5 |
32.4 |
46.9 |
30.9 |
| Total Rest of State - NSW |
292.2 |
776.4 |
1 068.6 |
27.3 |
| NEW SOUTH WALES |
831.4 |
2 613.1 |
3 444.5 |
24.1 |
| Melbourne - Inner |
80.0 |
272.9 |
350.9 |
22.8 |
| Melbourne - Inner East |
40.6 |
133.1 |
172 |
23.6 |
| Melbourne - Inner South |
52.3 |
140.4 |
192.1 |
27.2 |
| Melbourne - North East |
53.6 |
187.2 |
238.8 |
22.4 |
| Melbourne - North West |
39.8 |
111.9 |
154.1 |
25.8 |
| Melbourne - Outer East |
41.4 |
197.1 |
236.8 |
17.5 |
| Melbourne - South East |
95.1 |
285.9 |
382.3 |
24.9 |
| Melbourne - West |
75.3 |
290.7 |
368.6 |
20.4 |
| Mornington Peninsula |
29.3 |
110.4 |
139 |
21.1 |
| Total Greater Capital City - Vic |
510.8 |
1 726.3 |
2 237.8 |
22.8 |
| Ballarat |
12.1 |
50.9 |
63.9 |
18.9 |
| Bendigo |
15.3 |
48.8 |
66.6 |
23.0 |
| Geelong |
26.1 |
85.3 |
109.1 |
23.9 |
| Hume |
12.8 |
52.3 |
71.8 |
17.8 |
| Latrobe - Gippsland |
25.0 |
77.1 |
102 |
24.5 |
| Victoria - North West |
19.0 |
39.5 |
60.4 |
31.5 |
| Shepparton |
19.7 |
33.9 |
54.9 |
35.9 |
| Warrnambool and South West |
11.2 |
44.4 |
55 |
20.4 |
| Total Rest of State - Vic |
143.0 |
434.2 |
575.9 |
24.8 |
| VICTORIA |
651.9 |
2 161.8 |
2 813.7 |
23.2 |
| Brisbane - East |
30.1 |
84.6 |
116.5 |
25.8 |
| Brisbane - North |
24.3 |
78.4 |
101.5 |
23.9 |
| Brisbane - South |
41.8 |
133.5 |
174.8 |
23.9 |
| Brisbane - West |
18.2 |
57.1 |
78.4 |
23.2 |
| Brisbane Inner City |
37.4 |
115.0 |
152.9 |
24.5 |
| Ipswich |
32.1 |
128.8 |
158.2 |
20.3 |
| Logan - Beaudesert |
29.8 |
99.0 |
126.4 |
23.6 |
| Moreton Bay - North |
14.2 |
56.0 |
73.4 |
19.3 |
| Moreton Bay - South |
24.5 |
71.4 |
94.8 |
25.8 |
| Total Greater Capital City - Qld |
251.0 |
825.4 |
1078 |
23.3 |
| Cairns |
23.7 |
64.7 |
86.7 |
27.3 |
| Darling Downs - Maranoa |
19.7 |
39.2 |
56.4 |
34.9 |
| Central Queensland |
22.0 |
67.0 |
91.2 |
24.1 |
| Gold Coast |
78.1 |
195.1 |
275.1 |
28.4 |
| Mackay - Isaac - Whitsunday |
19.1 |
62.4 |
80.4 |
23.8 |
| Queensland - Outback |
8.9 |
21.4 |
26.7 |
33.3 |
| Sunshine Coast |
44.0 |
105.6 |
149.6 |
29.4 |
| Toowoomba |
14.2 |
36.5 |
49.3 |
28.8 |
| Townsville |
22.8 |
69.5 |
94.4 |
24.2 |
| Wide Bay |
25.1 |
62.3 |
88.3 |
28.4 |
| Total Rest of State - Qld |
280.7 |
719.8 |
997.5 |
28.1 |
| QUEENSLAND |
530.4 |
1 544.5 |
2 075.0 |
25.6 |
| Adelaide - Central and Hills |
41.1 |
99.9 |
139.3 |
29.5 |
| Adelaide - North |
46.5 |
130.5 |
177.7 |
26.2 |
| Adelaide - South |
40.1 |
103.9 |
144.0 |
27.8 |
| Adelaide - West |
21.3 |
78.0 |
97.4 |
21.9 |
| Total Greater Capital City - SA |
147.4 |
411.8 |
559.8 |
26.3 |
| Barossa - Yorke - Mid North |
8.9 |
24.6 |
34.0 |
26.2 |
| South Australia - Outback |
11.4 |
23.1 |
35.2 |
32.4 |
| South Australia - South East |
16.7 |
56.0 |
71.7 |
23.3 |
| Total Rest of State - SA |
36.9 |
104.0 |
141.5 |
26.1 |
| SOUTH AUSTRALIA |
185.8 |
514.8 |
700.6 |
26.5 |
| Mandurah |
14.2 |
31.1 |
43.8 |
32.4 |
| Perth - Inner |
26.6 |
61.1 |
88.2 |
30.2 |
| Perth - North East |
23.2 |
97.6 |
119.2 |
19.5 |
| Perth - North West |
52.6 |
192.0 |
243.4 |
21.6 |
| Perth - South East |
62.1 |
166.1 |
229.6 |
27.0 |
| Perth - South West |
50.9 |
126.9 |
177.9 |
28.6 |
| Total Greater Capital City - WA |
228.1 |
678.1 |
908.4 |
25.1 |
| Bunbury |
17.7 |
61.2 |
78.3 |
22.6 |
| Western Australia - Outback (North and South) |
19.3 |
67.1 |
88.4 |
21.8 |
| Western Australia - Wheat Belt |
9.6 |
37.7 |
48.5 |
19.8 |
| Total Rest of State - WA |
47.1 |
164.5 |
212.7 |
22.1 |
| WESTERN AUSTRALIA |
274.6 |
845.0 |
1 119.6 |
24.5 |
| Hobart |
26.9 |
71.6 |
98.9 |
27.2 |
| Launceston and North East |
16.0 |
42.4 |
57.9 |
27.6 |
| Tasmania - South East |
4.1 |
10.6 |
14.2 |
28.9 |
| Tasmania - West and North West |
12.2 |
25.8 |
38.1 |
32.0 |
| TASMANIA |
59.1 |
150.0 |
209.2 |
28.3 |
| Darwin |
18.4 |
61.2 |
80 |
23.0 |
| Northern Territory - Outback |
5.6 |
29.8 |
35.6 |
15.7 |
| NORTHERN TERRITORY |
24.4 |
91.0 |
115.4 |
21.1 |
| AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY |
44.3 |
161.1 |
204.7 |
21.6 |
| AUSTRALIA |
2 601.8 |
10.6 |
10 683.0 |
24.4 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
Duration of
casual employees with current employer
In August 2019 just over one million casual employees (or
40.9 per cent) had been with their current employer for less than 12 months. And
just under 80 per cent of this group expected to be with their current employer
in a year’s time (see Table 5).
Table 5—duration
with current employer for casual employees by industry, August 2019
| Industry of main job |
Duration with
current employer |
Share of total
employees |
| Under 12 months |
12 months or more |
Total |
Under 12 months |
12 months or more |
| |
(‘000) |
(%) |
| Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing |
21.3 |
32.8 |
54.1 |
39.4 |
60.6 |
| Mining |
22.8 |
12.0 |
34.8 |
65.5 |
34.5 |
| Manufacturing |
71.9 |
76.1 |
148 |
48.6 |
51.4 |
| Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services |
9.3 |
8.6 |
17.9 |
52.0 |
48.0 |
| Construction |
86.9 |
103.1 |
190.0 |
45.7 |
54.3 |
| Wholesale Trade |
25.0 |
32.4 |
57.4 |
43.6 |
56.4 |
| Retail Trade |
154.9 |
265.6 |
420.5 |
36.8 |
63.2 |
| Accommodation and Food Services |
229.8 |
266.5 |
496.3 |
46.3 |
53.7 |
| Transport, Postal and Warehousing |
44.5 |
78.0 |
122.5 |
36.3 |
63.7 |
| Information Media and Telecommunications |
14.5 |
24.1 |
38.6 |
37.6 |
62.4 |
| Financial and Insurance Services |
12.6 |
14.6 |
27.2 |
46.3 |
53.7 |
| Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services |
6.9 |
20.7 |
27.6 |
25.0 |
75.0 |
| Professional, Scientific and Technical Services |
40.4 |
68.6 |
109.0 |
37.1 |
62.9 |
| Administrative and Support Services |
54.6 |
61.8 |
116.4 |
46.9 |
53.1 |
| Public Administration and Safety |
24.1 |
48.9 |
73.0 |
33.0 |
67.0 |
| Education and Training |
67.1 |
121.3 |
188.4 |
35.6 |
64.4 |
| Health Care and Social Assistance |
118.0 |
194.8 |
312.8 |
37.7 |
62.3 |
| Arts and Recreation Services |
27.2 |
53.1 |
80.3 |
33.9 |
66.1 |
| Other Services |
34.7 |
59.9 |
94.6 |
36.7 |
63.3 |
| TOTAL |
1063.2 |
1539.2 |
2602.4 |
40.9 |
59.1 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
In terms of the industries expected to be hardest hit by the
COVID-19 virus, 46.3 per cent of casual employees in Accommodation and food
services had been with their current employer for less than 12 months, along
with 33.9 per cent of casual employees in Arts and recreation services.[12]
Young people are more likely to have been working for their current employer as
casuals for less than 12 months.
- 489,300 or 26.4 per cent of employees aged 15 to 24 years were
casual workers who had been with their current employer for less than 12
months. This compares with 294,600 or only 6.5 per cent of employees aged 25
years and over.
- Young people aged 15 to 24 years accounted for 46.0 per cent of
all short-term casual employees in August 2019 which compares with their 17.4
per cent share of all employees.
- Young people aged accounted for 72.7 per cent of short-term
casuals in Accommodation and food services, 68.2 per cent of short-term casual
in Retail trade and 51.8 per cent of short-term casuals in Arts and recreation
services.[13]
Table
6—employees by age, access to paid leave and duration with current employer,
August 2019
| Duration with current employer |
With paid leave
entitlements |
Without paid leave
entitlements |
Total |
| NUMBER |
(‘000) |
| 15 to 24 years |
|
|
|
| Less than 12 months |
294.6 |
489.3 |
783.8 |
| 12 months or more |
560.1 |
516.1 |
1 068.7 |
| TOTAL |
854.7 |
1 005.4 |
1 852.5 |
| 25 years or more |
|
|
|
| Less than 12 months |
1 018.2 |
576.4 |
1 589.6 |
| 12 months or more |
6 208.8 |
1 026.8 |
7 238.6 |
| TOTAL |
7 227.0 |
1 603.2 |
8 828.2 |
| SHARE OF TOTAL (%) |
(%) |
| 15 to 24 years |
|
|
|
| Less than 12 months |
15.9 |
26.4 |
42.3 |
| 12 months or more |
30.2 |
27.9 |
57.7 |
| TOTAL |
46.1 |
54.3 |
100.0 |
| 25 years or more |
|
|
|
| Less than 12 months |
11.5 |
6.5 |
18.0 |
| 12 months or more |
70.3 |
11.6 |
82.0 |
| TOTAL |
81.9 |
18.2 |
100.0 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
Note: Individual categories my not quite sum to totals in
columns and rows due to rounding.
Further analysis shows there were 165,000 young short-term
casuals employed in Accommodation and food services in August 2019, along with
103,200 employed in Retail trade, 33,800 in Health care and social assistance,
30,400 in Manufacturing and 27,600 in Education and training. There were only
14,000 young short-term casuals employed in Arts and recreation services.[14]
Longer-term casual employees working part-time averaged
earnings of $1,001.80 per fortnight in August 2019. Hence it follows that
employees with these characteristics that lose their job due to the impact of
COVID-19 are more likely than other employee types (that lose their job) to be
advantaged by the decision to set the JobKeeper payment at $1,500 per fortnight.
In contrast many full-time employees that lose their job will not receive full
wage replacement. Employees with and without paid leave entitlements working
full-time hours earned on average well in excess of $1,500 per fortnight in
August 2019 at $3,446.80 and $2,834.00 respectively (see Table 7).
Table
7—average fortnightly earnings for employees by access to paid leave, full-time
or part-time status, and duration with current employer, August 2019
| Duration with current employer |
With paid leave
entitlements |
Without paid
leave entitlements |
| Full-time |
Part-time |
Total |
Full-time |
Part-time |
Total |
| AVERAGE EARNINGS |
$ per fortnight |
| Under 12 months |
3 074.40 |
1 443.60 |
2761.40 |
2 899.40 |
823.00 |
1 516.20 |
| 1 and under 2 years |
3 092.40 |
1 458.00 |
2 735.80 |
2 549.60 |
833.80 |
1 270.00 |
| 2 and under 3 years |
3 173.00 |
1 529.80 |
2 852.00 |
2 816.40 |
938.40 |
1 475.60 |
| 3 and under 5 years |
3 251.20 |
1 511.60 |
2 903.00 |
2 928.00 |
942.60 |
1 499.80 |
| 5 and under 10 years |
3 479.00 |
1 789.20 |
3 123.20 |
3 112.40 |
1 232.00 |
1 816.40 |
| 10 and under 20 years |
3 723.40 |
1 869.40 |
3 288.20 |
3 094.20 |
1 263.00 |
1 759.00 |
| 20 years and over |
3 772.60 |
2 115.40 |
3 401.60 |
3 474.20 |
1 455.00 |
1 989.20 |
| 12 months and over |
3 446.80 |
1 722.80 |
3 079.80 |
2 834.00 |
1 001.80 |
1 523.20 |
| Total |
3 381.60 |
1 683.80 |
3 026.80 |
2 850.40 |
934.80 |
1 516.60 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder (based on ABS calculations
of weighted mean or average weekly earnings for each duration category)
Table 8 shows the number of employees by access to leave
entitlements, full-time or part-time status and duration with current employer.
Table 8—number
of employees by access to paid leave, full-time or part-time status, and
duration with current employer, August 2019
| Duration with current employer |
With paid leave
entitlements |
Without paid
leave entitlements |
| Full-time |
Part-time |
Total |
Full-time |
Part-time |
Total |
| NUMBER |
‘000 |
| Under 12 months |
1 063.6 |
251.6 |
1 311.5 |
352.4 |
709.2 |
1 063.2 |
| 1 and under 2 years |
601.0 |
164.5 |
765.0 |
101.7 |
303.8 |
405.5 |
| 2 and under 3 years |
743.3 |
177.8 |
921.7 |
108.5 |
260.2 |
367.2 |
| 3 and under 5 years |
979.2 |
241.0 |
1 223.2 |
88.9 |
241.7 |
331.5 |
| 5 and under 10 years |
1 338.6 |
355.8 |
1 694.5 |
83.1 |
171.7 |
251.7 |
| 10 and under 20 years |
1 124.0 |
343.9 |
1 466.0 |
33.6 |
88.4 |
122.9 |
| 20 years and over |
538.8 |
160.5 |
699.7 |
15.8 |
44.1 |
60.4 |
| 12 months and over |
5 324.9 |
1443.5 |
6 770.1 |
431.6 |
1 109.9 |
1 539.2 |
| Total |
6 390.4 |
1691.7 |
8 081.2 |
784.1 |
1 817.2 |
2 601.3 |
Source: ABS, Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder.
Conclusion
Uncertainty exists as to how many casual workers will be
affected by closures of businesses resulting from policy responses to the
outbreak of COVID-19. But the more immediate impacts are likely to affect short-term
casual workers in the food and hospitality industries as well as other service
industries affected by the decision to reduce the size of social gatherings.
[1]. Treasury, JobKeeper
Payment — Information for employees, Factsheet, 20 April 2020
[2]. Treasury,
JobKeeper
Payment—Information for employers, Factsheet, 25 April 2020
[3]. Services
Australia (SA), ‘More
financial support for coronavirus affected job seekers’, SA website, 22 March 2020.
[4]. M Klapdor, ‘Economic
response to coronavirus—social security measures part 1: temporary supplement
and improved access to income support’, FlagPost, Parliamentary Library blog,
23 March 2020.
[5]. M Cash
(Minister for Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business) and A Ruston
(Minister for Families and Social Services), COVID-19
mutual obligation arrangements extended, media release, 27 March 2020.
[6]. Ibid. Treasury,
Income
support for individuals, Factsheet, Treasury, Canberra, March 2020.
[7]. Australian
Public Service Commission, APS
Employment Data 30 June 2019 release
[8]. Australian
Public Service Commission, Circular
2020/1: COVID-19 leave arrangements
[9]. ABS,
Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, Glossary
[10]. Includes
child care services and other social support services (including aged care
assistance, disabilities assistance, marriage guidance, welfare counselling and
youth welfare services).
[11]. RSEs
provide an indication of the relative size of errors that are likely to occur
due to sampling or surveys being used to derive estimates rather than getting
information from the whole population such as when the Census is undertaken.
[12]. ABS,
Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
[13]. ABS,
Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder
[14]. ABS,
Characteristics
of Employment, cat. no. 6333.0, using TableBuilder.
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