Australia's health and community services labour forces are
continuing to grow strongly, according to a report released today
by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
Between 2001 and 2006 the health workforce increased by almost
23% while the community services workforce grew by 36%.
'However, for the health workforce there was a fall in supply in
very remote areas,' Mr David Braddock, Head of the AIHW's Labour
Force Unit said.
'There the health workforce supply decreased by 346 workers per
100,000 people (from 1,725 to 1,379). Conversely, there was a rise
in the supply of community services workers in very remote areas,
from 1,252 to 1,696 workers per 100,000 people.'
According to the report, Health and community services
labour force 2006, around 843,000 people were employed in
health and community services occupations in Australia in that year
- 65% were health workers and 35% were community services
workers.
Across the nation there were 2,649 health workers for every
100,000 people, and 1,422 community services workers per 100,000
people,' Mr Braddock said.
The supply of health and community services workers combined was
highest in major cities at 4,155 workers per 100,000. Inner
regional areas had 4,076 health and community services workers per
100,000 people, and outer regional areas 3,609 per 100,000.
The lowest supply, as expected, was in very remote areas, with
3,076 health and community services workers for every 100,000
people.
The number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers in
health and community services occupations grew at double the rate
for Australia as a whole between 2001 and 2006. Growth in the
number of Indigenous health workers was almost 45%, while for
Indigenous community services workers the numbers rose by almost
73%.
Indigenous Australians were under-represented in the health
labour force, but well-represented in the community services labour
force.
'Just over 15,000 Indigenous Australians were employed in health
and community services occupations in 2006', Mr Braddock said.
'Of those, just over 5,500 Indigenous Australians were employed
in the health workforce, comprising just 1% of health occupation
workers - well below the 2.5% Indigenous representation in the
population.'
There were around 9,500 Indigenous Australians working in
community services, or 3.2% of all community services workers.
Friday 6 March 2009
Further information: Mr David Braddock, tel. 02
6244 1136, mob. 0419 496 770.
For media copies of the report: Publications
Officer, AIHW, tel. (02) 6244 1032.
Availability: Check the AIHW Publications area
for the availability of Health and community
services labour force 2006.