OSCA 832134

Meat Packer

Overview

  • Employed persons

    10,700

  • Employment status

    69.6% Full time

    30.4% Part time

  • Median age

    36 years

  • Employment by sex

    63.7% Female

    36.3% Male

    Moderately female dominated

  • Indigenous employment share

    2.3%

  • Main employing industry

    Manufacturing

Indicator Meat Packer Total employment
Employed persons 10,700 12,049,400
Median age 36 years 40 years
Full-time share 69.6% 64.2%
Part-time share 30.4% 35.8%
Female employment share 63.7% 48.5%
Male employment share 36.3% 51.5%
Gender segregation intensity scale Moderately female dominated Gender balanced
Indigenous employment share 2.3% 2.2%
Main employing industry Manufacturing Health Care and Social Assistance
Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

Occupation overview

Meat Packers weigh, wrap, seal and label meat and meat products.

What the occupation involves

  • Weighs meat and meat products to ensure accurate packaging
  • Wraps and seals meat and meat products using appropriate packaging materials
  • Labels packaged meat and meat products with accurate information, such as dates, times and batch numbers
  • Inspects packaged meat and meat products for quality and freshness in preparation for sale
  • Assists in inventory management by counting packaged products, and placing products onto trays and racks and shipping cartons
  • Maintains cleanliness and hygiene standards in the packaging area
  • May operate packaging machinery and equipment, or package meat and meat products by hand

Common occupation titles

No alternative occupation titles are listed for this occupation.

Specialisations

No specialisations are listed for this occupation.

Skill level (education and experience level)

Skill level 5
equivalent to secondary education, or a Certificate I).

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

Labourers (8)

Employment

On this page

    Industries

    Top 10 most common industries, 2021

    Meat Packer Total employment
    Industry Share of occupation Industry Share of occupation
    Manufacturing 74.5% Health Care and Social Assistance 14.5%
    Retail Trade 9.3% Retail Trade 9.1%
    Wholesale Trade 3.8% Construction 8.9%
    Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 3.5% Education and Training 8.8%
    Administrative and Support Services 2.0% Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 7.8%
    Accommodation and Food Services 1.0% Public Administration and Safety 6.6%
    Transport, Postal and Warehousing 0.5% Accommodation and Food Services 6.5%
    Health Care and Social Assistance 0.2% Manufacturing 5.9%
    Arts and Recreation Services <0.1% Transport, Postal and Warehousing 4.5%
    Education and Training <0.1% 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

      26.9%

    • Victoria

      25.6%

    • Queensland

      24.9%

    • South Australia

      9.3%

    • Tasmania

      1.3%

    • Northern Territory

      0.2%

    • Australian Capital Territory

      0.2%

    Meat Packer Total employment
    State / Territory Employment Share of occupation Employment Share of occupation
    New South Wales 2,900 26.9% 3,684,200 30.6%
    Victoria 2,800 25.6% 3,162,900 26.2%
    Queensland 2,700 24.9% 2,444,100 20.3%
    South Australia 1,000 9.3% 839,400 7.0%
    Western Australia 1,200 11.6% 1,306,200 10.8%
    Tasmania 140 1.3% 254,700 2.1%
    Northern Territory 30 0.2% 107,000 0.9%
    Australian Capital Territory 20 0.2% 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

    Meat Packer

    Total employment

    Age group Meat Packer Total employment
    15–24 years 15.9% 14.3%
    25–34 years 30.0% 22.7%
    35–44 years 20.4% 22.3%
    45–54 years 19.2% 20.4%
    55–64 years 13.1% 15.3%
    65–74 years 1.5% 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 Meat Packer Total employment
    Female 63.7% 48.5%
    Male 36.3% 51.5%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    On this page

      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

      xlsx 1236447

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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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