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Australia’s imminent aging population has seen the demand for more jobs in healthcare and social assistance industries rise above any other profession.
The latest census figures released by the Bureau of Statistics show that 11.6 per cent of Australians are now working in the healthcare sector. This represents an increase of 1.1 per cent since the last census in 2006.
New South Wales employs the greatest number of healthcare workers at 31.2 per cent, while Victoria comes in second at 25.04, and Queensland third with 20.77 per cent of workers employed in healthcare.
The figures show that women dominate the healthcare workforce at 79 per cent whilst their male counterparts make up 21 per cent.
The census further revealed those working in healthcare are of the most educated in Australia, with 41 per cent possessing a bachelor degree, while 32 per cent of the workforce possess VET qualifications at Certificate III or higher.
Australia’s second most common occupation is now “community and personal service”, which includes those who work in health and welfare support, carers and aides, hospitality workers, protective service workers, and sports and personal services workers. This group represented 9.7 per cent of Australia’s labour force.
The increase in health employment comes as more jobs disappear from retail and manufacturing, a shift from the 2006 census where retail trade was the leading industry of employment in Australia.
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