Arts and Recreation Services

EMPLOYED

273,000

PART-TIME SHARE

47%

WORKFORCE SHARE

1.9%

FEMALE SHARE

50%

MEDIAN WEEKLY EARNINGS

$1,641

MEDIAN AGE

33

Arts and Recreation Services is a small employing industry. Around 1.9% of workers have their main job in this industry.

This diverse industry includes:

  • professional and recreational sports
  • creative and performing arts
  • Museums
  • Zoos and botanical gardens
  • amusement parks and recreation centres
  • casinos and gambling activities.

Median earnings are $1,641 per week, lower than all industries median earnings of $1,700.

On this page

    Employment

    Employment in the Arts and Recreation Services industry grew over the 20 years to February 2025.
    The number of workers grew by 9,800 (or 3.7%) over the last year.

    Source: ABS, Labour Force Survey, Detailed, May 2025, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) trend data.
    Note: Over the COVID-19 pandemic period (highlighted section in the chart above), some industries have censored values, resulting in a broken series for impacted industries. This is due to large quarterly fluctuations in employment resulting in trend data being unreliable for these quarters. Where data are available over the COVID-19 pandemic period, JSA recommends caution when using these trend estimates.
    Quarterly employment, Arts and Recreation Services Employment
    167200
    169700
    172100
    174600
    177000
    179300
    181600
    183800
    185800
    187800
    189500
    191100
    192500
    193900
    195100
    196100
    197100
    197900
    198700
    199400
    200200
    201000
    201900
    202900
    203800
    204800
    205700
    206600
    207500
    208300
    209200
    210000
    210900
    211900
    212900
    214100
    215400
    216800
    218300
    219900
    221300
    222700
    224100
    225500
    226800
    228100
    229500
    230900
    232400
    233900
    235400
    236600
    237700
    238500
    239100
    239500
    239600
    239500
    239300
    238900
    240300
    241900
    243900
    246300
    248900
    251700
    254700
    257600
    260500
    263200
    265800
    268300
    270700
    273000

    Sectors

    Sports and Physical Recreation Activities is the largest sector in the Arts and Recreation Services industry, employing 120,800 workers.

    Source: ABS, Labour Force Survey, Detailed, May 2025, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) trend data.
    Note: the sum of sectoral employment may not equal the industry total as data are trended separately, and not further defined (nfd) classifications have been excluded.
    Employment by industry sectors Employment
    Sports and Physical Recreation Activities 120800
    Creative and Performing Arts Activities 52000
    Gambling Activities 27600
    Parks and Gardens Operations 24700
    Amusement and Other Recreation Activities 18000
    Museum Operation 11800
    Horse and Dog Racing Activities 11500

    Occupations

    Sports Coaches, Instructors and Officials is the largest employing occupation in the Arts and Recreation Services industry.

    The 10 largest employing occupations are shown below.

    Some occupations are common across a number of industries.

    Largest employing occupations

    Source: Ranked using ABS, Labour Force Survey, 2024, four-quarter average data, customised report.
    ANZSCO CodeOccupation title
    4523Sports Coaches, Instructors and Officials
    4521Fitness Instructors
    1491Amusement, Fitness and Sports Centre Managers
    4524Sportspersons
    5421Receptionists
    2112Music Professionals
    2114Visual Arts and Crafts Professionals
    3623Greenkeepers
    4311Bar Attendants and Baristas
    2111Actors, Dancers and Other Entertainers

    Industry data

    This file contains data for all 19 industries to make comparing industry data easy. Information available includes:

    • industry overview
    • industry employment (20-year time series)
    • industry sector employment
    • top employing occupations by industry.

     

    Industry data - May 2025.xlsx

    industry_data_-_may_2025.xlsx118390

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