Bega Valley Shire

The labour force

The labour force section answers the question:

  • What are the characteristics of the local labour force?

The 'local labour force' differs from the 'workforce' as it includes all people who reside in the local area who are either employed or who are looking for work (unemployed). The local labour force is an important resource for the local economy as it represents the locally available human resources (skills, knowledge and experience) upon which the economy can draw. In a regional area, most industries rely on the local labour force to provide their workers, whereas in metropolitan areas, industries can draw on a labour pool that extends beyond the region.

Hours worked

Derived from the Census question 'Last week, how many hours did the person work in all jobs?'.

This data shows the distribution of working hours for workers who live in the local area. Full-time is generally considered to be 35 hours or more per week and part-time is 34 hours or less.

The availability of part time work is particularly important for students and women. Part time work has become more prevalent, particularly during periods of skill shortages. This is because offering more flexible workplace hours effectively increases the size of the potential labour force by providing opportunities for people to work who are unable to work full time. The hours worked by employed people in the local area depends on a number of factors:

  • The industry sector in which they work
  • The occupation level and requirement or opportunity to work overtime
  • The age structure and household structure of the working population

Note that the hours worked data relates to "all jobs", while the industry counted is what the respondent stated as their "main job".

Hours worked data should be viewed in conjunction with Gender, Age Structure, Occupation and Income to provide more insight into the observations made.

Data options:
Select gender:

Hours worked for the labour force Place of usual residence

Hours worked by gender for the labour force, Bega Valley Shire, 20062006
GenderHours workednumber% of totalRegional NSW %
PersonsNone5263.93.7
Persons1 hour - 15 hours1,86113.911.2
Persons16 hours - 24 hours1,40910.59.1
Persons25 hours - 34 hours1,53511.59.9
Persons35 hours - 39 hours1,72012.815.4
Persons40 hours1,89614.115.7
Persons41 hours - 48 hours1,0918.19.3
Persons49 hours or more2,08715.616.2
PersonsNot stated3382.52.6
PersonsUnemployed9387.07.0
PersonsTotal13,401100.0100.0
Hours worked by the labour force, Bega Valley Shire and Regional NSW 2006 None, Regional NSW: 3.7% 1 hour - 15 hours, Regional NSW: 11.2% 16 hours - 24 hours, Regional NSW: 9.1% 25 hours - 34 hours, Regional NSW: 9.9% 35 hours - 39 hours, Regional NSW: 15.4% 40 hours, Regional NSW: 15.7% 41 hours - 48 hours, Regional NSW: 9.3% 49 hours or more, Regional NSW: 16.2% Not stated, Regional NSW: 2.6% Unemployed, Regional NSW: 7.0% None, Bega Valley Shire: 3.9% 1 hour - 15 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 13.9% 16 hours - 24 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 10.5% 25 hours - 34 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 11.5% 35 hours - 39 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 12.8% 40 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 14.1% 41 hours - 48 hours, Bega Valley Shire: 8.1% 49 hours or more, Bega Valley Shire: 15.6% Not stated, Bega Valley Shire: 2.5% Unemployed, Bega Valley Shire: 7.0%

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2006.

Please refer to the specific data notes for more information.