91 research outputs found
Youth social exclusion in Australian communities: a new index
Using specialised data from the 2011 Census, this paper presents a new index intended to be representative of youth at risk of social exclusion.
Abstract
Social exclusion and inclusion has been given a great deal of attention in Australia and throughout the world. This broader concept of disadvantage has replaced much of the social discourse around poverty and inequality, with the realisation from researchers, practitioners and policy makers that disadvantage is often a multi-dimensional occurrence, spanning many dimensions of an individual’s life. Despite the attention social exclusion has been given, particular population groups are often overlooked – particularly young people. A growing interest in the power of geographic data and the prevalence of social exclusion, has lead the authors to develop the first nation-wide geographically disaggregated index of youth social exclusion for Australia. A number of domains and indicators deemed important to youth wellbeing were identified and constructed to develop a comprehensive index of youth social exclusion for young people aged 15-19 years. Using specialised data from the 2011 Census, supplemented with national school assessment data, we use a domains approach to construct an index that is representative of youth at risk of social exclusion, using a combination of principal components and equal weighting techniques. Particular attention is paid to ‘youth’ as an important stage of life in its own right and the implications of the delayed transition into adulthood that is now seen in many developed nations. Many more young people now remain as dependent children well into their twenties. A final index of youth social exclusion across Australian communities is presented and discussed
Lifting Diversity and Inclusion in Economics:How the Australian Women in Economics Network Put the Evidence into Action*
To support broader global efforts to improve diversity and inclusion in economics, this paper provides a statistical picture of the gender composition of the economics profession in Australia and the evidence-based initiatives taken by the Women in Economics Network (WEN) to improve women's representation and recognition. WEN's impact is evaluated across a range of metrics. This includes a case study of WEN's mentorship programme for university students that was delivered as a behavioural intervention and evaluated as a randomised control trial. Drawing on practical experiences in combination with research insights, the paper identifies some of the challenges encountered and the lessons that can be shared with similar organisations globally that are pursuing diversity and inclusion goals.</p
Happy workers: How satisfied are Australians at work?
In 2017, around 12 million Australians will work an estimated total of 20 billion hours in paid employment. An average Australian man can expect to spend half of their waking lives at a paying job and an average Australian woman about 38 per cent. Given the time and commitment we spend at work each day and year, shouldn’t we try and make it as human as possible?
A happy workplace where people feel valued can increase productivity and reduce the amount of human resources dedicated to resolve workplace grievances. Greater satisfaction and happiness at work has also been shown to have a number of positive relationships with business performance. Organisations with happy workers tend to have lower levels of absenteeism and staff turnover (Kristensen and Westergard 2004). Happier workers and workplaces also deliver higher levels of productivity and are often more innovative (Oswald et al. 2015, Iaffaldano and Muchinsky 1985).
Given the amount of time spent at work, the standard of living and sense of identity and belonging that a job can afford us, happiness at work is also closely linked to overall life satisfaction, and more so for men than women (Dockery et al. 2003). Those that find it difficult in the labour market, especially the unemployed, are more likely to have lower levels of life satisfaction than those that are gainfully employed.
In our workplaces we are also often able to access basic needs that are intrinsic to our overall wellbeing and level of satisfaction or happiness. These needs include a sense of competency, a sense of autonomy and a sense of relatedness (Deci and Ryan 2010). If all three are being met we are likely to feel far better about ourselves overall and have increased motivation and engagement in our daily tasks – including work.
The importance of creating workplaces that are ‘happy’ workplaces that can deliver so many benefits to individuals and the broader community is clear. In this report we look at the relationship between elements of job satisfaction and characteristics of individuals and their work using the latest data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey. As satisfaction and happiness are often interchangeable terms across economic and psychology studies, throughout this report we use these terms in this same way.
We look to find out who the happiest and unhappiest workers are in Australia and what contributes to greater satisfaction in the workplace. Is it the way we work – flexibility, hours, our occupation or the job itself? Is it our pay or job security? Does the size of the company we work for matter, or is it more about whether we own it or whether we work for someone else? And what about where we live and work – does that make a difference
Unequal opportunities: Life chances for children in the 'Lucky Country'
The importance of education and sufficient financial resources in equipping children and young people with the skills they need to succeed in life, to open doors and enhance social mobility, has been well documented. The overarching goals of the Australian Government’s ‘education revolution’ and social inclusion agenda, reflect this importance with a stated focus on increasing participation in education and training. Despite substantial concern about these issues, there has been to date very little research or regular indicators which focus specifically on equality of opportunity for Australian children. How can we tell if Australia is meeting the government’s vision of a ‘socially inclusive society’ in relation to the life prospects of children and young people? To what extent are we as a society enabling children born into low socio-economic status (SES) families to access the opportunities they need to make a better life for themselves and break the cycle of disadvantage? Put simply, are we really the ‘lucky country’, the land of the ‘fair go’ where children are able to reach their potential regardless of their background? The Smith Family and NATSEM have developed a suite of indicators that capture aspects of equality of opportunity and social mobility of Australian children and young people, which can be used to assess whether any change is taking place and if so, in what direction. A key goal of this research report is to assess the degree to which our society is able to provide children and young people with the opportunities to develop the skills they need to participate effectively, especially those most financially disadvantaged. This is important, not only from an equity perspective, but also an economic perspective. As a nation we need individuals to be able to leverage new educational opportunities, adapt career trajectories, contribute economically and reach their potential regardless of their social status, background or income in order to achieve productivity and participation goals. Also included in this report is a feature piece that delves further into the concept of intergenerational mobility within Australia. This section looks at an additional set of indicators to test whether those from less advantaged backgrounds have the same likelihood of moving up the social hierarchy to a higher income or occupational ranking as those from more advantaged backgrounds.. Authors: Rebecca Cassells, Justine McNamara, Cathy Gong and Sharon Bicknell
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