Occupation is a key component for evaluating the socio-economic status of the local workers and the skills required to work in each industry sector.
The occupations of the local workers in Cairns will be influenced by factors including:
- The economic base and employment opportunities available in Cairns;
- The age of the workforce;
- The skill and qualification level required to enter an industry; and
- The working and social aspirations of the population.
For a complete local workers analysis for Cairns, view Occupations in conjunction with other indicators, such as Educational qualifications and Income.
Data source
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) – Census 2011 (experimental imputed) & 2016 – by place of work
Local workers occupations | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cairns - Manufacturing | 2016 | 2011 | Change | ||||||
Occupations (Click rows to view sub-categories) | Number | % | Queensland | Number | % | Queensland | 2011 - 2016 | ||
Managers | 340 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 400 | 11.9 | 13.0 | -60 | ||
Professionals | 138 | 5.3 | 6.8 | 140 | 4.2 | 6.4 | -2 | ||
Technicians and Trades Workers | 1,088 | 41.5 | 27.8 | 1,384 | 41.3 | 29.4 | -296 | ||
Community and Personal Service Workers | 48 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 58 | 1.7 | 0.7 | -10 | ||
Clerical and Administrative Workers | 265 | 10.1 | 10.1 | 388 | 11.6 | 10.6 | -123 | ||
Sales Workers | 184 | 7.0 | 5.6 | 260 | 7.8 | 5.4 | -76 | ||
Machinery Operators And Drivers | 303 | 11.5 | 13.6 | 380 | 11.3 | 13.8 | -77 | ||
Labourers | 237 | 9.0 | 20.1 | 291 | 8.7 | 19.1 | -54 | ||
Inadequately described or not stated | 21 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 50 | 1.5 | 1.5 | -29 | ||
Total Persons | 2,624 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 3,351 | 100.0 | 100.0 | -727 | ||
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2011 and 2016. Compiled and presented by .id informed decisions Please refer to specific data notes for more information |


Dominant groups
An analysis of the jobs held by the Manufacturing workforce in Cairns in 2016 shows the three most popular occupations were:
- Technicians and Trades Workers (1,088 local workers or 41.5%)
- Managers (340 local workers or 13.0%)
- Machinery Operators And Drivers (303 local workers or 11.5%)
In combination these three occupations accounted for 1,731 people in total or 65.9% of the Manufacturing local workers.
In comparison, Queensland employed 27.8% as Technicians and Trades Workers; 14.0% as Managers and 13.6% as Machinery Operators And Drivers.
The major differences between the jobs held by the Manufacturing workforce in Cairns and Queensland were:
- A larger percentage of local workers(Manufacturing) employed as Technicians and Trades Workers (41.5% compared to 27.8%)
- A smaller percentage of local workers(Manufacturing) employed as Labourers (9.0% compared to 20.1%)
- A smaller percentage of local workers(Manufacturing) employed as Machinery Operators And Drivers (11.5% compared to 13.6%)
- A smaller percentage of local workers(Manufacturing) employed as Professionals (5.3% compared to 6.8%)
Emerging groups
The largest changes in the jobs held by the Manufacturing workforce in Cairns between 2011 and 2016 were those employed as:
- Technicians and Trades Workers (-296 local workers)
- Clerical and Administrative Workers (-123 local workers)
- Machinery Operators And Drivers (-77 local workers)
- Sales Workers (-76 local workers)