Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations Bill Shorten has made Aussie Jobs, Looking Back, Looking Forward publicly available on the eve of the resumption of Federal Parliament.
“Nothing is more important to a Labor Government than creating good jobs in fair workplaces. As the Parliament formally gets under way, I want everyone to have the opportunity during this election year to hear the details of Australia’s recent jobs story and read about what’s ahead of us,” Mr Shorten said.
Aussie Jobs draws together a broad range of labour market data and analysis of employment change over the last five years, as well as projected industry jobs growth out to 2016-17.
“Since the Labor Government came to office, jobs growth has been recorded across the majority of Australian industries with employment increasing by more than 837,000 over the five years to November 2012,” Mr Shorten said.
“More than 450 jobs have been created every day since November 2007, and more Australians are in work than ever before, with employment above 11.5 million.”
Among much good news about the Australian labour market Aussie Jobs, Looking Back, Looking Forward in particular highlights the strength of the service industries in the economy.
“The rise and rise of services is a big part of our recent jobs past and services will continue to be a huge part of our jobs future,” Mr Shorten said.
Despite global headwinds and structural transitions at home, the detailed statistical analysis shows jobs growth in Australia has been particularly strong in some of the key service industries.
“The services sector is already employing over 70 per cent of Australians and will continue to deliver a huge slice of our GDP in the future. This needs to be more widely recognised as a pillar of great economic success.”
Service industries showing strong growth in the five years to November 2012 include:
- Health Care and Social Assistance grew by more than 270,000 workers;
- Professional, Scientific and Technical Services and the Education and Training industries increased by more than 100,000; and
- Accommodation and Food Services increased by just over 80,000.
The Mining industry continued to record robust growth, almost doubling its workforce size over the last five years with employment increasing by around 130,000 and generating positive flow-on effects for a number of other industries.
Aussie Jobs also includes information and case studies on how businesses are meeting the challenges of an increasingly service-based and highly skilled Australian economy.
“More and more employers are seeking workers with formal qualifications. And that is precisely why the Gillard Government is investing billions in skilling our workforce and encouraging lifelong learning,” Mr Shorten said.
As the publication itself notes:
“While the number of working age Australians with Certificate III qualifications or above is 7,845,100 (52.9 per cent), these projections indicate that the attainment of higher level qualifications will become more important, with a candidate’s qualifications becoming a major deciding factor for employers looking to recruit staff.”
“Those with a bachelor degree or equivalent will be most in demand over the next five years, showing the importance of skilling Australians to ensure continued productivity growth,” he said.
“The bottom line is that Labor has an excellent record when it comes to job security, fair workplaces and helping create the jobs of the future.”
“As we move towards the 2013 election, the stark choice between Labor and the Coalition on good jobs and the future of work in Australia should rightly take centre stage in the debate.”
Aussie Jobs, Looking Back, Looking Forward is available at http://lmip.gov.au/default.aspx?LMIP/Publications/OtherReports.
Mr Shorten’s Media Contact: Jessica Lindell — 0408 642 804
