Toowoomba

Employment by industry (FTE)

In Toowoomba, Health Care and Social Assistance is the largest employer, generating 13,702 FTE jobs in 2022/23.

Full-time equivalent (FTE) employment is modelled by NIEIR and takes into account differences in hours worked between industry sectors. It is a measure that allows direct comparison of employment between industries in Toowoomba.

Typically, industries such as Retail Trade and Accommodation and Food Services, which employ many part-time workers, have lower FTE employment than total employment.

FTE employment is calculated directly by dividing the total hours worked in each industry by 38. By comparing the number of full-time equivalent jobs in each industry sector to a regional benchmark, you can clearly see the structure of Toowoomba's economy. This can be done by directly comparing the area to its benchmark, or by using a location quotient to look at the relative size of industries.

FTE employment should be viewed in conjunction with Employment by industry (Total) and Employment by industry (Census), for a full understanding of the industry breakdown in the area. Worker productivity data shows the value of a worker in each industry to the local economy. Employment locations shows where employment is taking place in each industry sector.

Data source

National Economics (NIEIR) - Modelled series

Please note: FTE employment is derived from Census data but has been corrected for the known undercount of employment in the Census. Detailed notes about how the figures are derived can be found in thespecific topic notes section.
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Full-time equivalent employment by industry sector
Toowoomba2022/232017/18Change
IndustryNumber%. QueenslandNumber%. Queensland2017/18 - 2022/23
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing6,2587.92.84,8566.73.2+1,402
Mining2,3613.03.12,3753.33.1-14
Manufacturing6,1297.77.05,8878.27.7+242
Electricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services1,2281.61.41,1081.51.4+120
Construction9,13811.611.17,27810.111.1+1,860
Wholesale Trade2,3703.02.82,2633.13.1+107
Retail Trade5,7367.37.96,1328.58.7-396
Accommodation and Food Services3,2574.15.43,7515.25.9-493
Transport, Postal and Warehousing4,4075.65.84,1665.86.2+241
Information Media and Telecommunications5150.71.05010.71.4+14
Financial and Insurance Services2,0342.62.81,8482.62.7+185
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services8871.11.81,0351.42.0-148
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services3,5064.48.13,5604.97.1-54
Administrative and Support Services1,6302.13.01,3761.93.1+253
Public Administration and Safety4,3445.56.84,7376.66.8-393
Education and Training7,7229.88.76,9379.68.4+785
Health Care and Social Assistance13,70217.314.810,68714.812.6+3,015
Arts and Recreation Services7190.91.46170.91.5+102
Other Services3,1604.04.12,9764.14.1+184
Total industries79,101100.0100.072,090100.0100.0+7,011

Source: National Institute of Economic and Industry Research (NIEIR) ©2024. ©2023. Compiled and presented in economy.id by .id (informed decisions). NIEIR-ID data are adjusted each year, using updated employment estimates. Each release may change previous years’ figures. Learn more

Please refer to specific data notes for more information
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 full-time equivalent local workers in Toowoomba in 2022/23 shows the three largest industries were:

  • Health Care and Social Assistance (13,702 people or 17.3%)
  • Construction (9,138 people or 11.6%)
  • Education and Training (7,722 people or 9.8%)

In combination these three fields accounted for 30,561 people in total or 38.6% of the local workers.

In comparison, Queensland employed 14.8% in Health Care and Social Assistance; 11.1% in Construction and 8.7% in Education and Training.

The major differences between the jobs held by the full-time equivalent local workers of Toowoomba and Queensland were:

  • A larger percentage of full-time equivalent local workers employed in Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (7.9% compared to 2.8%)
  • A smaller percentage of full-time equivalent local workers employed in Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (4.4% compared to 8.1%)
  • A larger percentage of full-time equivalent local workers employed in Health Care and Social Assistance (17.3% compared to 14.8%)
  • A smaller percentage of full-time equivalent local workers employed in Accommodation and Food Services (4.1% compared to 5.4%)

Emerging groups

The number of full-time equivalent local workers in Toowoomba increased by increased by 7,011 between 2017/18 and 2022/23.

The largest changes in the jobs held by the full-time equivalent local workers between 2017/18 and 2022/23 in Toowoomba were for those employed in:

  • Health Care and Social Assistance (+3,015 full-time equivalent local workers)
  • Construction (+1,860 full-time equivalent local workers)
  • Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing (+1,402 full-time equivalent local workers)
  • Education and Training (+785 full-time equivalent local workers)

Toowoomba Regional Council

economic profile