Canberra Region

Resident workers - Occupations of employment

There are more resident workers (All industries) Professionals in the Canberra Region than any other occupation.

Occupations are a key component in evaluating the knowledge, experience and skill-levels that industry can draw upon locally. It should be viewed with other indicators, such as Age structure, Qualifications, and Income for a comprehensive analysis of the Canberra Region's local resident workers.

When comparing the occupations of local resident workers with local workers, Occupation data indicates whether an economy draws on the skills offered by its own residents or relies on a different set of skills imported from elsewhere in the region.

Data source

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) – Census 2016 and 2021 – by usual residence

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Resident workers occupations
Canberra Region 20212016Change
Occupations (Click rows to view sub-categories)Number%. NSWNumber%. NSW2016 - 2021
Managers27,44915.714.623,20915.113.5+4,240
Professionals32,96418.825.827,06017.623.6+5,904
Technicians and Trades Workers25,64414.611.922,65614.712.7+2,988
Community and Personal Service Workers21,76412.410.618,12911.810.4+3,635
Clerical and Administrative Workers21,32312.213.020,07113.113.8+1,252
Sales Workers14,3288.28.014,3419.39.2-13
Machinery Operators And Drivers10,2465.86.09,1666.06.1+1,080
Labourers18,03510.38.216,46310.78.8+1,572
Inadequately described or not stated3,4101.91.92,6541.71.8+756
Total Persons175,163100.0100.0153,749100.0100.0+21,414

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions)

Did you know? By clicking/tapping on a category in the chart below you will be able to drilldown to the sub categories.
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Dominant groups

An analysis of the jobs held by the resident workers in the Canberra Region in 2021shows the three most popular occupations were:

  • Professionals (32,964 people or 18.8%)
  • Managers (27,449 people or 15.7%)
  • Technicians and Trades Workers (25,644 people or 14.6%)

In combination these three occupations accounted for 86,057 people in total or 49.1% of the resident workers (All industries).

In comparison, NSW employed 25.8% in Professionals; 14.6% in Managers and 11.9% in Technicians and Trades Workers.

The major differences between the jobs held by the resident workers (All industries) of the Canberra Region and NSW were:

  • A smaller percentage of resident workers (All industries) employed as Professionals (18.8% compared to 25.8%)
  • A larger percentage of resident workers (All industries) employed as Technicians and Trades Workers (14.6% compared to 11.9%)
  • A larger percentage of resident workers (All industries) employed as Labourers (10.3% compared to 8.2%)
  • A larger percentage of resident workers (All industries) employed as Community and Personal Service Workers (12.4% compared to 10.6%)

Emerging groups

The number of resident workers (All industries) in the Canberra Region increased by 21,414 between 2016 and 2021.

The largest change in the occupations of the resident workers between 2016 and 2021 in the Canberra Region were those employed as:

  • Professionals (+5,904 persons)
  • Managers (+4,240 persons)
  • Community and Personal Service Workers (+3,635 persons)
  • Technicians and Trades Workers (+2,988 persons)

Canberra Region Joint Organisation area

economic profile