The labour market

Introduction This chapter focuses on four key aspects of the development of the Australian labour market since Federation. First are the patterns in the total labour supply as influenced by population increase, participation, hours of work and trends in labour-force composition. Second is the growth in workforce skills, as represented by the changing role and place of education, including vocational training. Third is the evolution of Australia's distinctive pattern of industrial relations, including the structure of wages. Fourth are the trends and fluctuations in average wages and unemployment. Labour supply and population At the aggregate level, the 20th-century labour market is a story of the size and structure of the population driving the scale of the labour force available for the Australian economy. The basic drivers are those of population growth through migration and natural increase, and of workforce participation, including changes in female participation and youth and older worker engagement.