Women at Work, A.N.Z. Bank Quarterly Survey

Start Date
01 October 1968
End Date
31 October 1968
Physical Context
MS 5159-Papers of Dame Ivy Wedgwood, 1928-1972 [manuscript]./Item. Women at Work, A.N.Z. Bank Quarterly Survey

Text

C/  

*7  

A-N-Z  

Reprinted from A. N. Z. Bank Quarterly Survey, October, 1968,  

L·  

W8Ł) fåiy\  

Despite unprecedented levels of immigration since World War If  

and rapidly increasing numbers of young workers entering the workforce during the  

1960s Australian employers have almost continually faced labour shortages  

during the last twenty years. This demand has provided opportunities for  

women to enter the workforce in unprecedented numbers.  

HE FEMALE WORKFORCE increased by 6.25%  

per annum between the 1961 and 1966 censuses,  

while the male workforce increased by only 1.57% per  

annum. The workforce,* as defined for census purposes,  

includes employers, self-employed, wage and salary  

earners or unemployed persons, members of the defence  

forces and all those helping in any industry, business,  

trade or service but not in receipt of wage or salary.  

Australia’s population increased by 52.4% between  

the 1947 and 1966 censuses. The workforce rose 51.9%.  

Sources of Labour Supply  

Rates of growth of population and workforce varied  

considerably between the censuses of 1954, 1961 and  

1966, being influenced by the changing age pattern of  

the population and by the rates at which people in  

various age groups participate in the workforce.  

During the 1950s, the number of people making their  

initial entry into the workforce after leaving school  

increased only slowly. The 15-19 year olds usually supply  

major portion of new workers in an expanding  

economy, but low birthrates in the 1930s depressed  

this group in the 1950s. The number entering the  

workforce was further reduced by the tendency, especially  

evident in the case of boys, to remain at school.  

It was not until the large numbers born in the post-  

war ’baby boom” began to enter the workforce in the  

1960s, that natural increase began to exert major  

impact on the workforce. Many of those born since  

the war, especially boys, postponed entry into the  

workforce to increase their education. Therefore, the  

effect of the baby boom on the workforce was modified  

and extended over longer period.  

The high rate of migration was major factor in the  

increase of the workforce during the 1950s. Borrie and  

Spencer attribute 50% of population growth between  

1947 and 1961 to migration.f  

The most important features of post-war immigration  

have been large numbers, the high proportion in the  

20-39 years age group, and the higher rates of partici-  

pation in the workforce of women from overseas com-  

pared to native born. The high participation rates of  

European and American women are shown in the table.  

WOMEN IN THE WORKFORCE  

Female Workforce  

as of  

Total  

as of  

Total  

Country  

Females  

Workforce  

Year  

Turkey  

65.8  

40.2  

1960  

Poland  

61.9  

44.1  

1960  

Finland  

52.4  

39.0  

1960  

Czechoslovakia  

51.2  

38.8  

1963  

United Kingdom  

44.1  

32.6  

1961  

France  

42.5  

33.0  

1982  

U.S.A.  

39.3  

32.2  

1964  

Australia  

20.4  

25.1  

1961  

Married Women  

The post-war censuses indicate that third source  

of labour supply, now increasingly important in expand-  

ing the workforce and altering its composition, consists  

of women, especially married women, who were  

previously not gainfully employed. By 1966, three out  

of ten workers were females.  

1954  

1961  

1966'  

Female Workforce as percentage of:  

 

 

 

(a) Total Workforce  

22.8  

25.1  

29.5  

(b) Total Female Population  

19.0  

20.4  

25.0  

Married women in the Workforce as  

percentage of:  

(a) Married Female Population ..  

12.6  

17.3  

26.6  

(b) Total Workforce  

6.9  

9.6  

14.1  

(c) Female Workforce  

30.4  

38.3  

47.8  

change in definition since the 1961 census has meant the inclusion of about 108,000 additional people in the 1966 census. Thus  

results are not strictly comparable. Statistical growth rates overstate increases especially in the female workforce. Therefore, figures  

must be taken to indicate trends only.  

C.E.D.A.—Australia’s Population Structure and Growth 1965.  

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Acknowledgements

  1. Funding for digitisation contributed by The Hippocrates Foundation
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