Social Trends affect Employment Law in ABS Census Survey

In a media release shown by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on their website yesterday, it was found that by comparing Census data from 1976 and 2011, that predicting factors for part time and female employment could have a significant effect in the future of employment and related law.

In the survey, the ABS stated that, "The proportion of young women who were employed has risen substantially. In 1976, 54 per cent of young women were employed, compared with 69 per cent in 2011."

The analysis also found that part-time work was much more common in 2011 than in 1976.

"In 1976, only around one in ten employed young adults worked part-time, while in 2011 it was about one in three."

"The change is particularly apparent for men with less than one in twenty employed young men in 1976 working part time, compared with about one in four in 2011. However, those that are working full-time are often working longer hours."

The flow on effects for employment law in Australia seem to be following the precedents already set in the Fair Work Act 2009 and its amending Acts, in that, return to work arrangements and job sharing are being prioritised to both keep women in the workforce and increasingly cater to the higher percentage of part time workers evidenced in the Census comparison.

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