The Age Structure of an industry's local workers is a key component to understanding the role and function of that industry in Greater Sydney. It is an indicator of the age of the industry and how long it has been established in the area, as well as the possible challenges in expanding that industry in the future.
For example an area with young local workers may be more mobile and likely to change jobs/industries in the future while an industry with an older local workers may face succession planning issues and challenges in attracting new staff.
For a complete local workers analysis for Greater Sydney, Age Structure should be viewed in conjunction with Income and Hours worked.
Data source
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) – Census 2016 & 2021 – by place of work
Current area:
Current industry:
Current benchmark:
Sex:
| Local workers age structure | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater Sydney - All industries | 2021 | 2016 | Change | ||||||
| Ten year age groups (years) | Number | % | New South Wales% | Number | % | New South Wales% | 2016 - 2021 | ||
| 15 to 24 years | 289,255 | 12.7 | 13.8 | 282,548 | 13.4 | 14.0 | +6,707 | ||
| 25 to 34 years | 559,128 | 24.6 | 22.9 | 538,237 | 25.6 | 23.1 | +20,891 | ||
| 35 to 44 years | 552,035 | 24.3 | 22.6 | 493,704 | 23.5 | 22.3 | +58,331 | ||
| 45 to 54 years | 455,989 | 20.1 | 20.3 | 429,322 | 20.4 | 21.3 | +26,667 | ||
| 55 to 64 years | 313,976 | 13.8 | 15.3 | 280,783 | 13.3 | 15.0 | +33,193 | ||
| 65 years and over | 99,046 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 79,932 | 3.8 | 4.3 | +19,114 | ||
| Total Persons | 2,269,429 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 2,104,526 | 100.0 | 100.0 | +164,903 | ||
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2016 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions) Please refer to specific data notes for more information | |||||||||
Dominant groups
Analysis of the age structure of the workforce in Greater Sydney in 2021compared to New South Wales shows that there was a higher proportion of people in the younger age groups (15 to 44 years) and a lower proportion of people in the older age groups (45 years and over).
Overall, 61.7% of the workforce was aged under 45 years, compared to 59.3% for New South Wales. 38.3% were aged 45 years and over, compared to 40.7% for New South Wales.
The major differences between the age structure of the workforce in Greater Sydney and New South Wales were:
- A smaller percentage of local workers aged 15 to 24 years (12.7% compared to 13.8%)
- A larger percentage of local workers aged 25 to 34 years (24.6% compared to 22.9%)
- A larger percentage of local workers aged 35 to 44 years (24.3% compared to 22.6%)
- A smaller percentage of local workers aged 55 to 64 years (13.8% compared to 15.3%)
Emerging groups
The largest changes in the age structure of the workforce in Greater Sydney between 2016 and 2021 were:
- 35 to 44 years (+58,331 local workers)
- 55 to 64 years (+33,193 local workers)
- 45 to 54 years (+26,667 local workers)
- 25 to 34 years (+20,891 local workers)