Employment
Employment status
About this topic
Employment status shows whether people aged 15 years and over are employed full-time or part-time, unemployed, or not in the labour force. It is one of the main Census indicators of labour market participation and economic engagement.
This topic is useful for understanding workforce participation, unemployment, and the broader socio-economic profile of an area. Results from 2021 should be read carefully because COVID-19 restrictions increased the number of people who were employed but away from work around Census time.
Interpretation notes
- Labour force status is based on the week before Census night for people aged 15 years and over.
- In 2021, lockdown instructions could shift more people into 'employed, away from work', so over-time comparisons need care.
- The 'away from work' group also includes people who reported having a job but did not state hours worked.
Key insight
In 2021, Employed was the most common category among residents aged 15 and over in Whittlesea (C), accounting for 94.1% (107,055 people). This share was lower than Greater Melbourne (94.7%). Since 2016, the biggest change was in Employed, which increased by 18,505 people and 1.3 percentage points.
Section overview
Labour force status
Whittlesea (C) - Persons aged 15+ (Usual residence)
This table summarises employment status for Whittlesea (C) in 2021 for persons, with comparison against Greater Melbourne and change since 2016.
Labour force status snapshot
2021 distribution by category for Whittlesea (C), with comparison markers for Greater Melbourne.
Employed
2021 count
107,055
% of total
94.1%
Change from 2016
+1.3pp
107,055
94.1%
+1.3pp
Employed full-time
2021 count
64,046
% of total
56.3%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
64,046
56.3%
-1.3pp
Employed part-time
2021 count
35,884
% of total
31.5%
Change from 2016
+1.5pp
35,884
31.5%
+1.5pp
Employed, away from work
2021 count
7,119
% of total
6.3%
Change from 2016
+1.1pp
7,119
6.3%
+1.1pp
Unemployed (Unemployment rate)
2021 count
6,747
% of total
5.9%
Change from 2016
-1.3pp
6,747
5.9%
-1.3pp
Looking for full-time work
2021 count
3,560
% of total
3.1%
Change from 2016
-0.9pp
3,560
3.1%
-0.9pp
Looking for part-time work
2021 count
3,192
% of total
2.8%
Change from 2016
-0.4pp
3,192
2.8%
-0.4pp
Chart view
Labour force status change
Absolute change in category counts between 2016 and 2021.
Employed
+18,505
+1.3pp
Employed full-time
+9,089
-1.3pp
Employed part-time
+7,235
+1.5pp
Employed, away from work
+2,162
+1.1pp
Unemployed (Unemployment rate)
-121
-1.3pp
Looking for full-time work
-271
-0.9pp
Looking for part-time work
+155
-0.4pp
Data table
Employment status for Whittlesea (C). Labour force status. 2021 and 2016 counts, percentages, and change compared with Greater Melbourne.
| Category | 2021 | 2016 | Change | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | % | Greater Melbourne% | Count | pp | |
| Employed | 107,055 | 94.1% | 94.7% | 88,550 | 92.8% | 93.2% | +18,505 | +1.3pp |
| Employed full-time | 64,046 | 56.3% | 56.9% | 54,957 | 57.6% | 58.0% | +9,089 | -1.3pp |
| Employed part-time | 35,884 | 31.5% | 31.6% | 28,649 | 30.0% | 30.6% | +7,235 | +1.5pp |
| Employed, away from work | 7,119 | 6.3% | 6.2% | 4,957 | 5.2% | 4.6% | +2,162 | +1.1pp |
| Unemployed (Unemployment rate) | 6,747 | 5.9% | 5.3% | 6,868 | 7.2% | 6.8% | -121 | -1.3pp |
| Looking for full-time work | 3,560 | 3.1% | 2.7% | 3,831 | 4.0% | 3.5% | -271 | -0.9pp |
| Looking for part-time work | 3,192 | 2.8% | 2.6% | 3,037 | 3.2% | 3.3% | +155 | -0.4pp |
| Total labour force | 113,804 | 100.0% | 100.0% | 95,424 | 100.0% | 100.0% | +18,380 | 0.0pp |