OSCA 599941

Union Organiser

Overview

  • Employed persons

    2,500

  • Employment status

    85.8% Full time

    14.3% Part time

  • Median age

    45 years

  • Employment by sex

    42.9% Female

    57.1% Male

    Gender balanced

  • Indigenous employment share

    2.2%

  • Main employing industry

    Other Services

Indicator Union Organiser Total employment
Employed persons 2,500 12,049,400
Median age 45 years 40 years
Full-time share 85.8% 64.2%
Part-time share 14.3% 35.8%
Female employment share 42.9% 48.5%
Male employment share 57.1% 51.5%
Gender segregation intensity scale Gender balanced Gender balanced
Indigenous employment share 2.2% 2.2%
Main employing industry Other Services Health Care and Social Assistance
Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

Occupation overview

Union Organisers oversee, organise and promote union recruitment, operation, mass meetings and communication. They provides advice to union officials, delegates and representatives, and represent union members in industrial relations disputes or other proceedings. They act on behalf of their union members to negotiate working conditions, wages and employment opportunities.

What the occupation involves

  • Oversees and promotes union operations
  • Recruits new members to the union
  • Advocates for reform or regulation of industry
  • Provides advice to other union officials
  • Develops effective structures, including union members' communications, at worksites
  • Runs mass meetings with union members
  • Identifies and develops new and existing delegates, and health and safety representatives
  • Uses knowledge of legislation, awards, collective agreements, employment contracts and wage payment systems to represent union members in industrial relations disputes and assist in disciplinary proceedings, tribunals and courts
  • Represents union members in negotiations or at conferences
  • Visits union members at their place of work to check conditions

Common occupation titles

No alternative occupation titles are listed for this occupation.

Specialisations

  • Union Official

Note: Specialisations are examples of roles in within this occupation and are not separate OSCA occupations.

Skill level (education and experience level)

Skill level 3
equivalent to a mid-level Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification (Certificate IV or Certificate III with at least 2 years’ on-the-job training).

Note: While skill levels are described using formal education levels, some people use a combination of informal learning, on-the-job training and personal experience to achieve an equivalent level.

Licensing or registration requirements

No licensing or registration requirements are listed for this occupation.

OSCA structure

Employment

On this page

    Industries

    Top 10 most common industries, 2021

    Union Organiser Total employment
    Industry Share of occupation Industry Share of occupation
    Other Services 84.1% Health Care and Social Assistance 14.5%
    Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 3.3% Retail Trade 9.1%
    Public Administration and Safety 2.3% Construction 8.9%
    Construction 2.1% Education and Training 8.8%
    Education and Training 1.0% Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 7.8%
    Health Care and Social Assistance 0.9% Public Administration and Safety 6.6%
    Transport, Postal and Warehousing 0.9% Accommodation and Food Services 6.5%
    Administrative and Support Services 0.6% Manufacturing 5.9%
    Manufacturing 0.4% Transport, Postal and Warehousing 4.5%
    Mining 0.3% Financial and Insurance Services 3.7%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    States and territories

    Employment distribution by states and territories, 2021

    • New South Wales

      28.5%

    • Victoria

      27.8%

    • Queensland

      19.2%

    • South Australia

      7.4%

    • Tasmania

      3.5%

    • Northern Territory

      1.2%

    • Australian Capital Territory

      2.6%

    Union Organiser Total employment
    State / Territory Employment Share of occupation Employment Share of occupation
    New South Wales 700 28.5% 3,684,200 30.6%
    Victoria 690 27.8% 3,162,900 26.2%
    Queensland 470 19.2% 2,444,100 20.3%
    South Australia 180 7.4% 839,400 7.0%
    Western Australia 240 9.5% 1,306,200 10.8%
    Tasmania 90 3.5% 254,700 2.1%
    Northern Territory 30 1.2% 107,000 0.9%
    Australian Capital Territory 60 2.6% 248,600 2.1%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    Age and sex

    Employment distibution by age group and sex, 2021

    Union Organiser

    Total employment

    Age group Union Organiser Total employment
    15–24 years 4.3% 14.3%
    25–34 years 21.2% 22.7%
    35–44 years 23.5% 22.3%
    45–54 years 23.7% 20.4%
    55–64 years 22.3% 15.3%
    65–74 years 4.4% 4.3%
    75 years and over 0.1% 0.6%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.
    Sex Union Organiser Total employment
    Female 42.9% 48.5%
    Male 57.1% 51.5%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

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      OSCA occupation profiles data

      This file contains data available from the OSCA Occupation Profile page.

      Use of this data must include the relevant attribution text provided.

      OSCA Occupation data - 2021 Census.xlsx

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      Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA)

      Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA) is the skill-based classification used to categorise occupations across the Australian labour market. OSCA is used to define occupations across all official occupational statistics. OSCA replaces the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO).

      Each job is classified to one, and only one, group of jobs at each level of the classification with no overlaps. This prevents the accidental double-counting of roles within the Australian labour market. For more information about OSCA, visit the What is OSCA information page, or the ABS website.

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