RDP 1999-12: Unemployment and Skills in Australia Appendix A: Data

Data for Figure 1:

Australia: Males and females, 15–64 years of age. Source: ABS Cat. No. 6227.0 and ABS Cat. No. 6235.0.

United States: Males and females 25–64 years of age. Due to a change in the method of reporting educational attainment, data from 1992 onwards are not directly comparable with previous years. Source: USA Economic Statistics (1996).

Italy: Males and females 14–70 years. Skilled: with upper secondary qualification (diploma di scuola media superiore) including vocational qualification. Unskilled: without secondary school qualification. Source: Annuario Statistico Italiano (quoted in Jackman et al (1997)).

France: Selection criteria: males and females, 15 years old and over. Skilled: with baccalaureat general or vocational qualification (CAP or BEP). Unskilled: without either of the above qualifications. Source: La Population Active d'Apres l'Enquete Emploi, INSEE (quoted in Jackman et al (1997)).

United Kingdom: Selection criteria: males, 1664 years old; females, 1660 years old. Skilled: with A-level (or equivalent), including senior vocational qualification. Unskilled: with O-level (or equivalent), including junior vocational qualification. Source: General Household Survey individual record files (quoted in Jackman et al (1997)).

Canada: Males and females, 15 years and older. Skilled: with some post-secondary education. Unskilled: up to 1983: with 13 years of schooling (some or completed secondary education); from 1984 onwards: with secondary education qualification. Source: The Labour Force, Statistics, Canada (quoted in Jackman et al (1997)).

Data on labour force status by educational attainment are taken from Transition from Education to Work, ABS Cat. No. 6227.0 and Labour Force Status and Educational Attainment, ABS Cat. No. 6235.0. Relevant labour force statistics from ABS Cat. No. 6227.0 are available on an annual basis from May 1989 to May 1998. There is a major structural break in this survey between 1992 and 1993 reflecting the introduction of a new classification of educational qualifications. Statistics from ABS Cat. No. 6235.0 are available annually from February 1979 to February 1994. The new classification of qualifications was introduced between 1993 and 1994, thus data for the last year of this survey are not comparable with previous years.

Data on labour force status by occupation are taken from Labour Force Status by Occupation of Last Job in Labour Force, Australia, ABS Cat. No. 6203.0. Data are available from 1966. After 1977 the definition of ‘last job’ was changed to ‘last full-time job within two years’, substantially reducing the proportion of the working age population represented by the survey results. There are structural breaks in this survey in 1986 and 1996, reflecting changes in the definition of occupation groups.

Data on transition probabilities are taken from the Survey of Employment and Unemployment Patterns (SEUP), using data on the Population Reference Group over the period September 1994 to September 1996. The SEUP is a longitudinal survey conducted by the ABS that was established between April and July 1995, and includes people who were aged 15 to 59 at that time and who were living in private dwellings in both urban and rural areas.

Definition of educational skill:

Skilled: Degree or non-degree tertiary qualification.

Unskilled: No post-school qualifications.

‘Degree’ means completion of a higher degree, postgraduate diploma or bachelors degree. ‘Other tertiary qualifications’ includes undergraduate diplomas, associate diplomas, skilled vocational qualifications and basic vocational qualifications. Persons still at school, and those that never attended school, are excluded.

Definition of occupational skill:

Before 1986 – Skilled: ‘professional, technical and related workers’, and ‘administrative, executive and managerial workers’; Unskilled: All other occupation groups, except ‘tradepersons, production workers and labourers, miners and quarrymen’. This group was excluded, since it contained a substantial proportion of both high-skilled and low-skilled workers.

Between 1986 and 1996 – Skilled: ‘managers and administrators’, ‘professionals’, ‘para-professionals’, ‘tradespersons’; Unskilled: All other occupation groups.

After 1996 – Skilled: ‘managers and administrators’, ‘professionals’, ‘associate professionals’, ‘tradespersons and related workers’, ‘advanced clerical and service workers’; Unskilled: All other occupation groups.