Australian Government - SkillsInfo

Agriculture Forestry and Fishing


 

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing employs approximately 359,000 persons, full time and part time, which is around 3.3 per cent of the total workforce. Over the past five years, employment in the industry has increased at a rate of 0.2 per cent per annum. The median age for workers in this industry is 48 years and median earnings are around $776 per week (before tax) for full-time employees.

Industry Employment Outlooks  provide detailed analysis of employment characteristics, trends and prospects by industry, and highlight specific sectors where job growth is the strongest. Specific issues highlighted in these outlooks include workforce ageing, employment share by gender, educational profile, weekly earnings, average hours worked, regional and occupational employment.

 

Below is an Industry Employment Overview of the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry. For more detailed information go to the Industry profiles, or directly to the Industry and Regional Tables page for data on broad (ANZSIC 1 digit) industries

For information on data sources, including time periods, go to Help.

 

The following summary table illustrates how this historical trend translates into rates of growth within various time intervals (i.e. one, two, five and ten years).

      

Source: DEEWR Trend Data based on ABS Labour Force, Australia, Cat no: 6291.0.55.003 – August 2009.

 

The following shows projected future growth, general employment characteristics and the proportion of workers aged 45 years and over in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry.

         

Characteristics and Mature Age Source: DEEWR Special Order based on ABS Labour Force, Australia, Cat no: 6291.0.55.003 – Calendar Year Average 2008.

 

The following shows the top 10 employing DEEWR Labour Market Regions (LMRs) for this industry including the number employed by each region (in 000's):

Eastern Victoria 42.2
Central and North QLD 40.4
SA Country 38.1
Greater WA 36.3
Western Victoria 32.0
Southern NSW (incl ACT) 29.3
Southern QLD 29.1
Western NSW 26.9
Tasmania 15.9
Northern NSW 12.8

Source: Four quarter average based on ABS Labour Force, Australia, Cat no: 6291.0.55.003 – August 2009

More information on employment in the Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing industry by ABS by Labour Force Region and by DEEWR Labour Market Region can be viewed by clicking the relevant link.

The top employing occupations in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing are shown below.   Click on any of the occupation titles to go to the Job Outlook web page for that occupation.  Job Outlook contains a comprehensive statistical profile for each occupation, as well as links to Australian JobSearch and MyFuture.   

  

Livestock Farmers 106.2
Crop Farmers 46.8
Mixed Crop and Livestock Farmers 35.3
Livestock Farm Workers 28.9
Crop Farm Workers 24.5
Agricultural, Forestry & Horticultural Operators 13.4
Bookkeepers 9.4
Shearers 5.3
Deck and Fishing Hands 4.5
Garden and Nursery Labourers 3.6

Source: DEEWR Special Order based on ABS Labour Force, Australia, Cat no: 6291.0.55.003 – Calendar Year Average 2008.
   

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