Corrections Industry Reference Committee
- Corrections IRC’s 2018 Skills Forecast
- IRC membership
- Australian Industry Standards – Skills Service Organisation
Public Safety Industry Reference Committee
Corrections and Public Safety
Overview
This page provides high level information and data on the Corrections and Public Safety industry which comprises the following industry sectors:
For more information on any of the above, please visit the respective sector page.
All data sources are available at the end of the page.
IRC and Skills Forecasts
IRC and Skills Forecasts
Industry cluster snapshot
Industry cluster snapshot
Employment and training snapshot
Employment in the Public Order and Safety Services industry has grown between 2000 and 2018, reaching a peak of approximately 198,800 in 2013 and again peaking at the same level in 2018. Employment levels in the Defence industry have remained more consistent, with a rise from 2000 to 2005 and a peak of around 34,300 in 2012. In 2018 there were around 30,600 employed in this industry. It is projected that employment levels in both industries will rise between 2018 and 2023, though the rise will be stronger for the Public Order and Safety Services industry, predicted to reach around 222,300.
Police are the largest proportion of the Public Order and Safety Services workforce, at just under 30%. Employment levels for all occupations in the Public Order and Safety Services industry are projected to increase between 2018 and 2023. The strongest increase is expected for Security Officers and Guards (10%). For analysis of Defence occupations, see the Defence sector page. Note due to exemptions, training data for this industry is limited, and should be considered as a general trend indicator.
Program enrolments in the Corrections and Public Safety industry were relatively consistent between 2014 and 2017 with somewhere between 13,000 and 14,800 enrolments. During the same period there was a rise in program completions from just over 3,400 completions in 2014, to 4,995 in 2017. A consistent rise in subject-only enrolments in this industry was present between 2014 and 2017, reaching approximately 136,000 subject-only enrolments across training packages in this industry during 2017.
Industry insights on skills needs
Job vacancy data indicates that the top generic skills in demand for the Public Order and Safety Services industry are:
- Communication skills
- Planning skills
- Problem solving
- Research
- Writing skills.
This data also identifies the following occupations as those in highest demand for the industry:
- Security Officers and Guards
- Prison Officers
- Police
- Welfare Support Workers
- Enrolled and Mothercraft Nurses.
A general trend identified in the Corrections and Public Safety industry by the Corrections IRC’s 2018 Skills Forecast and the Public Safety IRC’s 2018 Skills Forecast is the impact of continual technological development. Workers are required to use continuously updating digital technologies, and in areas such as Police or Defence, organisations must address technology-related crime. In some cases this adds complexity to existing roles, or creates new roles which require workers with high levels of digital literacy.
For specific analysis of skills needs in this industry, see the respective sector pages.
Links and resources
Links and resources
Below is a list of industry-relevant organisations and associations. Hyperlinks have been included where available.
Industry associations and advisory bodies
Australian Council of State Emergency Services
Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience
Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency
Australian Government Department of Defence
Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council
Corrective Services New South Wales
Northern Territory Correctional Services
Probation and Community Corrections Officers’ Association
Queensland Corrective Services
South Australian Department for Correctional Services
Victorian Department of Justice and Regulation
Western Australia Department of Justice
Employers
ACT Parks and Conservation Service
Australian Road Rescue Organisation
Australian Government Department of Defence
Forestry Corporation of New South Wales
New South Wales State Emergency Service
Tasmania State Emergency Service
Victoria State Emergency Service
Employee associations
Australian Prison Officers Association
Australian Professional Ocean Lifeguard Association Inc.
Community and Public Sector Union
Defence Force Welfare Association
National SES Volunteers Association
Police Federation of Australia
Public Service Association NSW
United Firefighters Union of Australia
Licensing / Regulatory bodies
Data sources and notes
Data sources and notes
Department of Employment 2018, Employment Projections, available from the Labour Market Information Portal
- by ANZSIC 3 digit 760 Defence Industry and 771 Public Order and Safety Services Industry, employment projections to May 2023
- by ANZSCO, selected occupations, employment projections to May 2023
- 1391 Commissioned Officers (Management)
- 1392 Senior Non-commissioned Defence Force Members
- 3231 Aircraft Maintenance Engineers
- 4411 Defence Force Members - Other Ranks
- 4412 Fire and Emergency Workers
- 4413 Police
- 4421 Prison Officers
- 4422 Security Officers and Guards
- 5311 General Clerks
- 8999 Other Miscellaneous Labourers.
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2018, Employed persons by Industry group of main job (ANZSIC), Sex, State and Territory, November 1984 onwards, 6291.0.55.003 - EQ06, viewed 1 November 2018 <http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/6291.0.55.003May%202018?OpenDocument>
- Employed total by ANZSIC 3 digit 760 Defence Industry and 771 Public Order and Safety Services Industry, 2000 to 2018, May Quarter.
Australian Bureau of Statistics 2017, 2016 Census – employment, income and unpaid work, TableBuilder. Findings based on use of ABS TableBuilder data.
- Employment level by 3 digit 760 Defence Industry and 771 Public Order and Safety Services Industry, and 4 digit level occupations to identify the relevant VET-related occupations in the industry as a proportion of the total workforce.
Training data has been extracted from the National VET Provider Collection, Total VET activity, 2016 Program Enrolments by Correctional Services Training Package, Defence Training Package, Police Training Package and Public Safety Training Package.
Job vacancy data have been extracted from Burning Glass Technologies 2018, Labour Insight Real-time Labour Market Information Tool, Burning Glass Technologies, Boston, viewed July 2018, <https://www.burning-glass.com>.
Data shown represent most requested generic skills, occupations and employers according to internet job postings in Australia between July 2015 and June 2018 filtered by ANZSIC and ANZSCO classification levels listed below.
- Generic skills / Occupations
- Community and Personal Service Workers
- 771 Public Order and Safety Services, excluding 7712 Investigation and Security Services.
- Employers
- Community and Personal Service Workers
- 4422 Security Officers and Guards (4422)
- 4421 Prison Officers (4421)
- 4413 Police (4413)
- 4117 Welfare Support Workers (4117)
- 4114 Enrolled and Mothercraft Nurses (4114)
771 Public Order and Safety Services, excluding 7712 Investigation and Security Services.
Updated: 17 Dec 2018