Employment In Australia Research Articles

Ghosts in the labour market: perceived health implications of informal labour in Australia.

Employment conditions are important social and commercial determinants of health. Informal employment-also known as 'cash-in-hand' and 'undeclared' work-is a discrete employment condition that has salience around the world. Fuelled by neoliberal ideology, informal employment has become increasingly common in high-income countries. Public health research concerning the health of informal workers comes largely from low- and middle-income countries, where the phenomenon is more visible. There has been little research on the health effects of informal employment in high-income countries including Australia. Twenty-nine workers aged 18 years and older, who were undertaking informal work activities, were recruited using social media and an online marketplace in Tarndanya (Adelaide-Kaurna Country), Australia. Qualitative narrative data, demographic profiles, and physical and mental health scores were collected. Most informal workers reported unfair and indecent employment conditions including job insecurity, low income, coercion, and lack of respect and dignity at work, and were often exposed to unsafe and unhealthy work environments. Workplace injuries and exposure to occupational hazards were common; and Physical and Mental Component Scores were poorer among informal workers when compared to the population of South Australia as a whole. With informal employment in Australia described as part of a 'significant, pervasive, damaging and growing' problem, there is a need for a health promotion lens over industrial relations policies in the interest of creating equitable access to fair and decent work.

After the killing fields: Post-pandemic changes in journalism employment in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

This article continues a longitudinal national study of journalism employment in Australia and contributes to new understandings of journalism employment in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Results suggest a shift in the organisational landscape of the media in Australia, with an expansion of large organisations at the ‘top,’ and a considerable loss of small micro-ventures (largely based online) at the ‘bottom.’ Implications include stronger centralised editorial control at the corporate level, urbanisation and homogenisation of media producers and product, and reduced opportunities for creative entry-level roles.

After the killing fields: Post-pandemic changes in journalism employment in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand

This article continues a longitudinal national study of journalism employment in Australia and contributes to new understandings of journalism employment in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Results suggest a shift in the organisational landscape of the media in Australia, with an expansion of large organisations at the ‘top,’ and a considerable loss of small micro-ventures (largely based online) at the ‘bottom.’ Implications include stronger centralised editorial control at the corporate level, urbanisation and homogenisation of media producers and product, and reduced opportunities for creative entry-level roles.

A Foot in the Australian Employment Door: A Qualitative Study of Highly Skilled Migrant Women

AbstractIn the recent years, Australia has been seeking highly skilled migrants to close the skill gap and increase economic participation in the labour market. Although women are predominant among recent migrants in Australia, they experience higher unemployment rates than male migrants. Previous research has shown that one key challenge they face is their family responsibilities that hinder them in the employment market. In this study, factors in gaining Australian employment for highly skilled migrant women are highlighted. Drawing on 27 semi-structured qualitative interviews with such women, the analysis identified three main factors in gaining employment in Australia: (1) leveraging social capital; (2) accumulation of human capital; and (3) prior, home-country work experience. These factors are not mutually exclusive but interplay to assist highly skilled migrant women in obtaining employment in Australia. These findings have contributed to the migrant employment literature in filling an empirical gap and supporting human capital theory, as well as presenting micro, meso, and macro implications for policy.

Organisational and policy barriers to transitioning from supported into open employment for people with an intellectual disability

ABSTRACT Background People with an intellectual disability prefer more choice with employment options and more community facing roles rather than just traditional supported employment roles. However, data reveal that transition rates from supported to open employment in Australia remain very low and these findings are also found internationally. Method To examine current organisational and policy barriers preventing transition from supported to open employment, a series of 27 in-depth interviews were conducted with people with an intellectual disability, staff from supported employers, and staff from open employers. Results There were several key policy and organisational barriers identified. These included inflexible funding models and packages, lack of knowledge and experience of open employers, and insufficient training, pathways, and supports for people with an intellectual to make that transition. Conclusion The findings highlight some of the broader policy and program reforms that are required, commencing in school and inclusive of all employer groups.

A Systematic Review to Move Australian Disability Employment Forward for Autistic People

AbstractThe current Disability Employment Service (DES) model serving autistic job seekers in Australia will end in the year 2023. The Australian Government is exploring new options for a replacement model. Aiding these efforts a systematic review of the literature examined the evidence base of effective assisted employment supports for autistic people in Australia. Using PRISMA guidelines, of 1839 search results, eight papers met inclusion criteria concerning: (a) autistic individuals, (b) assisted employment in Australia, (c) enablers to employment gain or retention, and (d) original evidence. All effective activities require providers to understand autism and the needs of autistic adults. We suggest the first steps in enhancing DES include educating providers and their staff in autism and hiring autistic employment consultants.

The Steppingstone Effect of Casual Employment in Australia: A Re‐Examination*

This study re‐examines the steppingstone effect of casual employment using data covering a much longer period than that used in Buddelmeyer and Wooden (Industrial Relations, 50(1), 109–30, 2011). For males the steppingstone effect found in this study is similar to that in Buddelmeyer and Wooden (Industrial Relations, 50(1), 109–30, 2011). Whereas Buddelmeyer and Wooden (Industrial Relations, 50(1), 109–30, 2011) find no steppingstone effect of casual employment for females, this study shows the effects occur to them. The positive result for females appears to be driven by weakened labour market conditions. This suggests that for females the steppingstone effect of casual employment could be sensitive to broad economic conditions.

‘What about me?’: An analysis of employers’ engagement with employment service providers in Australia

This paper examines the under-explored demand-side of active labour market programmes that aim to transition people without jobs into employment. The paper's contribution centres on understanding the benefits that government-funded employment services can offer to employers and how they can work with employment service providers to leverage these. Drawing on in-depth qualitative interviews with employers in Australia, our findings extend pre-existing concepts of employer engagement by illustrating the human resource, corporate social responsibility, and financial benefits to employers of engaging with employment services and how firm size affects their engagement. The findings offer improvements to policymaking and practice to facilitate the effectiveness of employment services in Australia and elsewhere.

Unequal opportunities in accessing employability‐related programmes: South Asian graduates' experiences in Australia

AbstractLimited scholarly work has been conducted on obtaining equal opportunities to participate in employability‐related programmes by international students while studying in Australia. Drawing on a qualitative study, 20 South Asian postgraduates were interviewed to explore their experiences in accessing employability‐related programmes. Based on the findings, South Asian graduates have experienced unequal opportunities in accessing employability‐related programmes as postgraduate international students in Australia. They are disadvantaged by generic career advice and resume assistance offered by their university career office, and companies invited to university career fairs offer internships, placements or graduate programme opportunities mostly to domestic students. As a result, South Asian graduates were unable to gain employment in their field of studies. South Asian graduates have also offered several useful recommendations to facilitate more equal chances of developing employability and thereby gaining successful employment in Australia. These include partnerships with companies in providing employment opportunities, diversification of university career office roles, and establishing connections with alumni. The paper also discusses implications for Australian higher education institutions and higher education policy and practice in Australia.

Changes in the Pattern of Employment in Australia and Its Potential Influence on Return to Work after Injury

Changes in the Pattern of Employment in Australia and Its Potential Influence on Return to Work after Injury

'What did I get myself into?' Indigenous women and mining employment in Australia

The prevailing view in the literature is that women are more adversely impacted by mining than men, with a major contributing factor being that women are largely excluded from accessing the benefits of employment at large scale operations. Despite industry efforts to increase female participation over the past decade or so, the mining industry remains male dominated. Very few studies provide any substantial employment data on Indigenous women or detail their experience working at large mines. This article presents an overview of recent developments for Indigenous women employed in the Australian resource industry, and their experiences, drawing on research conducted at four large mines in Western Australia. The authors argue that the industry is not adequately recognising or responding to gender-based employment impacts for Indigenous groups in Australia and offer insight for future policy and practice.

A matter of time? Institutional timescapes and gendered inequalities in the transition from education to employment in Australia

This article explores why women miss out in the transition from the educational system to the labour market. Using nationally representative longitudinal data (2001–18) from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, we compare how long after graduation it takes men and women with tertiary qualifications (n = 2030) to achieve key labour market milestones: (1) getting a full-time job; (2) getting a permanent contract; (3) earning an average wage; (4) finding a job that matches their skill level. We find significant gender differences in reaching these milestones, confirming that time is a critical dimension for understanding gendered inequalities in the returns to education. We attribute findings to incompatible ‘timescapes’ across the institutions of education, family and employment. The more flexible timescape of education allows women to succeed, but the inflexible timescape of employment (particularly when combined with family responsibilities) impedes them from turning educational achievement into labour market progress.

Comparative reflections of Australian and African female academics on working from home during COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a heavy toll on women globally, and female academics were no exception to the unprecedented, forced shift to working from home. Increased workloads, additional domestic responsibilities, and extended working hours have led to high levels of dissatisfaction among this group of academics. This disruption has also impacted mental and physical wellbeing. There has been limited research on the experiences of female academics during the transition to the new work environment in the early stages of the pandemic. This research compares the opportunities and challenges faced, as well as the support received, by female academics in Australia and Africa. Specifically, this study reports on the changing roles; demands of increased workloads; challenges, and opportunities faced both personally, and in general, an exploratory, qualitative approach was adopted in this study. An online questionnaire was developed and distributed through mailing lists in Africa and Australia; LinkedIn; as well as a personal invitation by the researchers on WhatsApp and email. Purposeful and snowballing sampling female academics in Australia and Africa were targeted, Inclusion criteria for this study were female academics employed at any higher education institution (HEI), private or public, in contract, and part-time and full-time employment in Australia and Africa since the start of the pandemic (February 2020). A total of 171 respondents (144 from Australia and 27 from Africa) were received from a larger, global study with 260 responses gathering data about female academics’ experiences during COVID-19. The data were analyzed using thematic and inductive analyses. The study sheds light on workload, motivation, perceptions about career progression, and work status. The research contributes to the body of knowledge of femaleacademic work, gender disparity, and higher education impact during COVID-19. The research aims to add value to the literature that supports the growing feminism in academia to ensure HEIs support this cohort of academics.

The role of tourism in service sector employment: Do market capital, financial development and trade also play a role?

Workers' living standards have recently deteriorated in the service sector throughout the world, although a few decades ago, service was among the fastest growing sectors in industrialised nations. However, in recent years, in service sectors tourism especially has been drying up. This paper examines the symmetric and asymmetric effects of tourism, market capital, financial development, and trade on service sector employment in Australia from the period 1991-2019. The results of the cointegration tests, notably the ARDL and NARDL bound tests, reveal that the variables are related in the long run. The positive effect of tourist arrival on service sector employment in Australia is confirmed by long-run estimates from both ARDL and NARDL approaches. Similarly, both approaches also confirm the long-run positive relation of financial development. However, while ARDL shows long-run negative and positive associations of market capital and trade, respectively, the opposite is found in the case of the NARDL approach. As a result, policy proposals like planning and initiating tools for ensuring consistent international arrivals and easing of entry requirements have been recommended by this study to assist Australia in enhancing service sector employment, thus promoting economic development.

Untangling the gender pay gap in radiation oncology.

Untangling the gender pay gap in radiation oncology.

The evolution of mining employment during the resource boom and bust cycle in Australia

Mining employment in Australia can be cyclical and volatile. Since the gold rush in the 1850s, Australia has experienced two major mining booms. The first was in the 1970s and the second (i.e., the mineral boom) was in the mid-2000s and so it is important to have a discussion about trends in the Australian mining industry and about employment during mining cycles. This study employs Australian mining industry data to investigate sectoral labor mobility (moving from one industry to another) when the business cycles have changed. This research has used quarterly data from 1950q1 to 2018q4 for several industries such as mining, the building and construction industry, rental, hiring and real estate services, transport, postal and warehousing, agriculture, forestry and fishing, and manufacturing to conduct an empirical analysis. The findings of this study provide evidence that the sectoral shift of mining employment in Australia’s mineral and resource industry is highly correlated and dependent on the world economic circumstances. What happens in the world economies has an important bearing on how shocks are transmitted to the Australian mining industry and other sectors. The study also shows that displaced mining workers move around from one industry to another. In particular, the building and construction, agricultural, fishing and forestry, manufacturing, and real estate industries are found to be highly affected by the movement of labor.

The Lived Experiences and Perspectives of People with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Mainstream Employment in Australia

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience significant barriers to employment. This study aimed to look at the support received by individuals with ASD in gaining and maintaining open employment from their perspective. A phenomenological approach was adopted with participants (n = 9) participating in semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis identified four key themes; being supported, feeling successful, career progression and expectations. The findings suggest that individuals with ASD receive support from many different sources in their employment including supervisors, co-workers and parents. The support they received from disability employment consultants was more focused on obtaining a job rather than job maintenance or career progression. Career progression was rarely discussed by participants with their disability employment consultant, despite some evidence of poor job matches and unused qualifications and skills (reflecting a poor investment for individuals and society). Despite this, participants reported feeling successful due to having a job, having pride in their work, and feeling valued by co-workers. The study highlights the need for more research on understanding the longer-term support needs of people with ASD in open employment. Changes in policy to better resource and incentivize disability employment providers could produce more positive outcomes for people with ASD throughout their working lives.

Pandemic effects on public service employment in Australia

AbstractThe COVID-19 pandemic is sending shockwaves through communities and economies, and public servants have risen to the novel policy challenges in uncharted waters. This crisis comes on top of considerable turmoil for public services in recent decades, with public management reforms followed by the global financial crisis (GFC) leading to considerable change to public sector employment relations and a deprivileging of public servants. The research adopts the lens of the ‘public service bargain’ to examine the effects of the pandemic across Australian public services. How did Australian public service jurisdictions approach public employment in 2020, across senior and other cohorts of employees? How did this pandemic response compare to each jurisdictions’ response to the GFC a decade earlier? The research also reflects more broadly of the impact on public sector employment relations and to what extent pandemic responses have altered concepts of the diminished public service bargain or the notion of governments as model employers?

RETRACTED: International nursing students’ perceptions and experiences of transition to the nursing workforce – A cross-sectional survey

This article has been retracted: please see Elsevier Policy on Article Withdrawal (https://www.elsevier.com/locate/withdrawalpolicy). This article has been retracted at the request of the authors because the data reported in the manuscript are likely to have been compromised. It came to the co-authors’ attention after the publication of the article that a large proportion of the surveys reported in the study had been completed by a respondent using the first author’s IP addresses. The authors would like to apologize to readers for this error.

Law and Disability 'Supported' Employment in Australia: The Case for Ending Segregation, Discrimination, Exploitation and Violence Against People with Disability at Work

Law and Disability 'Supported' Employment in Australia: The Case for Ending Segregation, Discrimination, Exploitation and Violence Against People with Disability at Work