The Diversity of Casual Contract Employment

„X The ABS definition of a ¡¥casual employee¡¦ includes: ƒ{ many workers who do not have a casual employment contract; ƒ{ a large group whose work is not casual (in the sense of being occasional, irregular or short term); and ƒ{ aggregates across distinct groups of casual contract employees who have very different entitlements and work arrangements. „X In August 1999, more than one in ten people categorised as casual employees by the ABS were in fact owner managers. This upward bias in the data has increased since the late 1980s and is most evident for people working full-time. „X Using alternative data from a new irregular ABS survey, it is estimated that there were 1.5 million casual contract employees in August 1998 (equivalent to 17.7 per cent of employed persons, compared to 23.2 per cent who would have satisfied the ABS definition of a casual employee). „X In August 1998, 95 per cent of casual contract employees had an implicit contract for ongoing employment, only 4 per cent had a job which their employer had indicated was short term, and many perceived that they were able to progress to an ongoing contract job. „X More than a third of casual contract employees had an implicit contract for ongoing employment and regular earnings in August 1998. Many of these ¡¥ongoing casuals¡¦ have been granted entitlements associated with ongoing employment (such as long service leave) because the true nature of their work is ongoing. „X However, 80 per cent of casual contract employees in August 1998 were not protected by unfair dismissal laws, 62 per cent had irregular earnings (excluding overtime), and 40 per cent wanted to work more hours. They were also concentrated in low skill occupations „X The welfare impacts of particular job traits will depend on the preferences of those affected. Casual contract employees tend to be young, female, and full-time dependent students. A large minority (29 per cent in August 1998) are aged over 24 and have dependants, although this group is more likely to have employment conditions closer to ongoing contract employees. „X Hence, whether an employee has a casual contract provides little information about his or her welfare. Where the concern is about so- called ¡¥precarious¡¦ employment, analysts need to identify such employment on the basis of work arrangements rather than the type of employment contract.casual contract employment - casual employees - forms of employment survey - job traits - employee welfare

The growth of non-traditional employment: are jobs becoming more precarious?

Examines the limitations of statistics for the analysis of non- traditional employment. Particular attention is given to problems interpreting the measure of casual employees in data published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Much of the discussion about non- traditional employment in Australia has drawn on the ABS measure of casual employees because it is one of the few regularly published measures of non-traditional employment. It shows that the share of all employed persons who are casuals — often interpreted as an indicator of ‘precarious’ employment — grew from 13 per cent in 1984 to 22 per cent in 1999. The staff paper finds that the ABS measure of casual employees in August 1998 was overstated by 34 per cent, because it included people who were not genuine employees with a casual employment contract, and at least one-third of all employees with a casual employment contract did not work in a way that was casual (occasional, irregular or short term).non-traditional employment - casual employment - workers - labour - statistics - ABS

Unemployment and re-employment of displaced workers

Examines the incidence and adjustment experiences of workers who are displaced by economic change. Since the mid-1970s, the aggregate annual rate of retrenchment has fluctuated in a counter-cyclical pattern around a relatively stable long-term trend of about 5 per cent. The paper shows that the probability of retrenchment and the nature of post-retrenchment adjustment varies between different groups of workers and depends on general economic conditions.unemployment - re-employment - employment - displaced workers - labour - retrenchment - occupations - casual employment - job

Greenhouse gas emissions and the productivity growth of electricity generators

This paper analyses electricity generation in four Australian states and the Northern Territory in the late 1990s It finds that productivity growth estimates for electricity generators can change significantly when allowance is made for greenhouse gas emissions. Using an innovative analytical technique for incorporating environmental impacts in productivity estimates, it shows that productivity growth is overestimated when emission intensity is rising and underestimated when emission intensity is falling. This is because emissions are undesirable and so if they fall (grow) per unit of output then this will tend to increase (decrease) estimated productivity.greenhouse gas emissions - productivity growth - electricity - abatement

Creating Markets for Ecosystem Services

'Creating Markets for Ecosystem Services' by Greg Murtough, Barbara Aretino and Anna Matysek, was released on 19 June 2002. The paper investigates how well environmental problems related to salinity, biodiversity and climate change can be addressed by creating markets for ecosystem services. The views expressed in this paper are those of the staff involved and do not necessarily reflect those of the Productivity Commission

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and the Productivity Growth of Electricity Generators

"Greenhouse Gas Emissions and the Productivity Growth of Electricity Generators" by Greg Murtough, David Appels, Anna Matysek, and C. A. Knox Lovell, was released on 18 December 2001. This paper develops and applies a measure of productivity growth that can incorporate unpriced environmental impacts. The methodology builds on the established technique of data envelopment analysis and is applied to one of the more significant environmental issues facing Australia - greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation. The main finding of the paper is: productivity growth estimates for electricity generators can change significantly when allowance is made for greenhouse gas emissions. The paper develops an innovative statistical technique for incorporating environmental impacts in productivity estimates. It shows that accounting for greenhouse gas emissions reduces estimated productivity growth when emission intensity is rising and increases it when emission intensity is falling. In the late 1990s, changes in emission intensity (and hence the impact of emissions on estimated productivity growth) appear to have been largely driven by movements in thermal efficiency (electricity supplied per unit of fuel). The paper also found that there are regional differences in the cost (in terms of foregone output of electricity) of abating emissions. The views expressed in this paper are those of the staff involved and do not necessarily reflect those of the Productivity Commission

Greenhouse Gas Emissions and the Productivity Growth of Electricity Generators

"Greenhouse Gas Emissions and the Productivity Growth of Electricity Generators" by Greg Murtough, David Appels, Anna Matysek, and C. A. Knox Lovell, was released on 18 December 2001. This paper develops and applies a measure of productivity growth that can incorporate unpriced environmental impacts. The methodology builds on the established technique of data envelopment analysis and is applied to one of the more significant environmental issues facing Australia - greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation. The main finding of the paper is: productivity growth estimates for electricity generators can change significantly when allowance is made for greenhouse gas emissions. The paper develops an innovative statistical technique for incorporating environmental impacts in productivity estimates. It shows that accounting for greenhouse gas emissions reduces estimated productivity growth when emission intensity is rising and increases it when emission intensity is falling. In the late 1990s, changes in emission intensity (and hence the impact of emissions on estimated productivity growth) appear to have been largely driven by movements in thermal efficiency (electricity supplied per unit of fuel). The paper also found that there are regional differences in the cost (in terms of foregone output of electricity) of abating emissions. The views expressed in this paper are those of the staff involved and do not necessarily reflect those of the Productivity Commission.Environmental Economics and Policy,