Appendix 1ꟷAPS workforce trends
This appendix summarises Australian Public Service overall workforce trends for 2023–24. Where relevant, data is included from previous years. The primary source of data is the Australian Public Service Employment Database (APSED).
The APS is a diverse workforce spanning 583 locations across Australia in 101 agencies. As at 30 June 2024, the APS had increased to 185,343 employees, working across 234 job roles in fields such as service delivery, research, regulation, project management and policy development. This growth reflects an additional 15,214 employees joining the APS during 2023–24, an overall increase in size of 8.9%.
APS employment trends
As at 30 June 2024, there were 185,343 employees in the APS, comprising:
- 170,186 ongoing employees, up by 12.7% from 151,058 ongoing employees in June 2023
- 15,157 non-ongoing employees, down by 20.5% from 19,071 non-ongoing employees in June 2023.
Table A 1 shows how this distribution has changed from 2019 to 2024. Non-ongoing employees in the APS are employed for a specific term, or for the duration of a specified task, or to perform duties that are irregular or intermittent (casual). Of all non-ongoing employees at 30 June 2024:
- 8,568 (56.5%) were employed for a specified term or the duration of a specified task
- 6,589 (43.5%) were employed on a casual basis.
The decrease in non-ongoing employees was due to a decrease in both specified term (2,987) and irregular or intermittent (casual) non-ongoing employees (1,024) during 2023–24. Specified task employees increased by 97 during the same period.
During 2023–24:
- 30,540 ongoing employees were engaged by the APS, up by 38.5% from 22,056 ongoing engagements in 2022–23
- 11,280 ongoing employees separated from the APS, down by 4.9% from 11,856 separations of ongoing employees in 2022–23.
Table A 1: Ongoing and non-ongoing APS employees (2019 to 2024)
| Year | Ongoing APS employees | Non-ongoing APS employees |
|---|---|---|
| June 2024 | 170,186 (91.8%) | 15,157 (8.2%) |
| June 2023 | 151,058 (88.8%) | 19,071 (11.2%) |
| June 2022 | 140,850 (88.5%) | 18,340 (11.5%) |
| June 2021 | 133,976 (87.2%) | 19,601 (12.8%) |
| June 2020 | 132,257 (88.0%) | 18,103 (12.0%) |
| June 2019 | 132,240 (90.1%) | 14,517 (9.9%) |
Source: APSED
Tables A 2 and A 3 show the agencies with the largest increases and reductions in employees.
Table A 2: Agencies with the largest increases of employees (2023–24)
| Agency | Ongoing | Non-ongoing | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Disability Insurance Agency | +2,214 | (+41.6%) | -21 | (-6.5%) | +2,193 | (+38.8%) |
| Defence | +1,403 | (+7.8%) | +22 | (+6.5%) | +1,425 | (+7.8%) |
| Health and Aged Care | +1,135 | (+20.6%) | +38 | (+7.9%) | +1,173 | (+19.6%) |
| Services Australia | +4,892 | (+17.6%) | -3,743 | (-82.1%) | +1,149 | (+3.5%) |
| Australian Taxation Office | +836 | (+4.4%) | +155 | (+10.3%) | +991 | (+4.8%) |
Note: Figures represent the net change and the percentage change from 30 June 2023 to 30 June 2024.
Source: APSED
Table A 3: Agencies with the largest reductions of employees (2023–24)
| Agency | Ongoing | Non-ongoing | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Trade and Investment Commission | -103 | (-14.7%) | -53 | (-41.7%) | -156 | (-18.9%) |
| Attorney-General's | +53 | (+2.5%) | -105 | (-34.0%) | -52 | (-2.1%) |
| Australian Research Council | -29 | (-17.6%) | -5 | (-55.6%) | -34 | (-19.5%) |
| Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman | +38 | (+4.2%) | -52 | (-51.0%) | -14 | (-1.4%) |
| Home Affairs | +281 | (+2.0%) | -295 | (-28.7%) | -14 | (-0.1%) |
Note: Figures represent the net change and the percentage change from 30 June 2023 to 30 June 2024.
Source: APSED
APS employment and the Australian population and labour force
While the size of the APS has grown, its size relative to the population it serves, and to the wider labour force, has changed over time. Table A 4 shows APS headcount in the context of the Australian population size, and the Australian labour force, over time.
Table A 4: APS headcount as a proportion of Australian population and Australian labour force, over time
| June 2008 |
June 2012 |
June 2016 |
June 2020 |
June 2024 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| APS employees | 159,299 | 167,343 | 155,607 | 150,360 | 185,343 |
| Australian population | 21,249,200 | 22,733,500 | 24,190,900 | 25,649,200 | 27,095,255 |
| APS employees as % of population | 0.75% | 0.74% | 0.64% | 0.59% | 0.68% |
| Employed persons | 10,487,557 | 10,958,923 | 11,507,887 | 11,733,447 | 13,647,452 |
| APS employees as % of employed persons | 1.52% | 1.53% | 1.35% | 1.28% | 1.36% |
Sources:
- APSED
- Estimated Residential Population (Australian Bureau of Statistics), National, state and territory population, Series: A2133251W, Population and components of change - national. The June 2024 estimate is a population projection figure: 'High Series' (Australian Bureau of Statistics (2022-base---2071)
- Labour Force, Australia, (Australian Bureau of Statistics), Labour Force, Australia, Series: A84425129C (Labour force status for 15-64 year olds by Sex - Trend, Seasonally adjusted).
Location
At 30 June 2024, the largest number of APS employees were located in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) (68,435), which represented 36.9% of the APS, followed by Victoria (Vic) (32,002 or 17.3%) and New South Wales (NSW) (30,712 or 16.6%).
At 30 June 2024, the proportion of APS employees located in the ACT, NSW, Northern Territory (NT) and Tasmania (Tas) was lower than a decade earlier, while the proportion located in all other states was higher. Over the same period, the proportion of APS employees based in regional Australia dropped from 13.7% in 2015 to 12.3% in 2024. Table A 5 shows these changes.
Over 2023-24, the proportion of APS employees located in the ACT decreased from 38.1% to 36.9%. The proportion based in the states increased, with the exception of NSW and Tas which both decreased by only 0.1%. The proportion in the NT remained steady. The proportion of APS employees based in regional Australia decreased slightly from 12.9% in 2023 to 12.3% in 2024. Table A 5 shows these changes.
Table A 5: Location of APS employees at 30 June (2015, 2023 and 2024)
| Location | 2015 | 2023 | 2024 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Headcount | % | Headcount | % | Headcount | % | |
| ACT | 58,079 | 38.1 | 64,815 | 38.1 | 68,435 | 36.9 |
| Vic | 24,465 | 16.1 | 28,471 | 16.7 | 32,002 | 17.3 |
| Melbourne | 20,947 | 13.8 | 23,744 | 14.0 | 27,080 | 14.6 |
| Regional Vic | 3,518 | 2.3 | 4,727 | 2.8 | 4,922 | 2.7 |
| NSW | 29,323 | 19.3 | 28,382 | 16.7 | 30,712 | 16.6 |
| Sydney | 19,855 | 13.0 | 19,504 | 11.5 | 21,634 | 11.7 |
| Regional NSW | 9,468 | 6.2 | 8,878 | 5.2 | 9,078 | 4.9 |
| Qld | 16,646 | 10.9 | 21,540 | 12.7 | 24,180 | 13.0 |
| Brisbane | 11,332 | 7.4 | 15,550 | 9.1 | 17,755 | 9.6 |
| Regional Qld | 5,314 | 3.5 | 5,990 | 3.5 | 6,425 | 3.5 |
| SA | 9,302 | 6.1 | 11,245 | 6.6 | 12,907 | 7.0 |
| Adelaide | 8,925 | 5.9 | 10,884 | 6.4 | 12,506 | 6.7 |
| Regional SA | 377 | 0.2 | 361 | 0.2 | 401 | 0.2 |
| WA | 7,030 | 4.6 | 8,118 | 4.8 | 9,001 | 4.9 |
| Perth | 5,980 | 3.9 | 7,429 | 4.4 | 8,274 | 4.5 |
| Regional WA | 1,050 | 0.7 | 689 | 0.4 | 727 | 0.4 |
| Tas | 3,819 | 2.5 | 4,184 | 2.5 | 4,428 | 2.4 |
| Hobart | 3,318 | 2.2 | 3,559 | 2.1 | 3,790 | 2.0 |
| Regional Tas | 501 | 0.3 | 625 | 0.4 | 638 | 0.3 |
| NT | 2,192 | 1.4 | 1,968 | 1.2 | 2,158 | 1.2 |
| Darwin | 1,631 | 1.1 | 1,349 | 0.8 | 1,468 | 0.8 |
| Regional NT | 561 | 0.4 | 619 | 0.4 | 690 | 0.4 |
| Overseas | 1,385 | 0.9 | 1,406 | 0.8 | 1,520 | 0.8 |
| Total Capital Cities | 130,067 | 85.4 | 146,834 | 86.3 | 160,942 | 86.8 |
| Total Regional | 20,789 | 13.7 | 21,889 | 12.9 | 22,881 | 12.3 |
| All | 152,241 | 100.0 | 170,129 | 100.0 | 185,343 | 100.0 |
Source: APSED
Note: Totals may not sum due to rounding.
Job families
The APS Job Family Framework groups roles that require the performance of similar or identical sets of tasks. The framework classifies jobs at 3 levels – family, function and role. The 18 job families are broken into clusters of job functions and further into job roles.
As at 30 June 2024, 50 agencies supplied job family data relating to 158,577 APS employees (85.6%).
Figure A 1: Proportion of job families in the APS, by headcount (at 30 June 2024)
Source: APSED
Figure A 2 presents the location of APS job families across Canberra, other cities and regions across Australia.
Figure A 2: APS job families, by location (at 30 June 2024)
Source: APSED
Engagements and separations
Engagement numbers of ongoing employees in the APS have fluctuated over the last 10 years. This ranges from 2,367 in 2014–15 during the APS-wide recruitment freeze, up to 30,540 in 2023–24.
Tables A 6 and A 7 cover ongoing APS engagements by classification and by age group respectively.
Table A 6: Ongoing APS engagements by classification (2014–15 to 2023–24)
| Classification | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trainee | 130 | 584 | 558 | 641 | 443 | 505 | 572 | 918 | 865 | 635 |
| Graduate | 1,037 | 1,436 | 1,484 | 1,247 | 1,205 | 1,392 | 1,381 | 1,793 | 1,895 | 1,863 |
| APS 1 | 36 | 48 | 57 | 44 | 46 | 62 | 80 | 117 | 112 | 188 |
| APS 2 | 151 | 485 | 456 | 172 | 165 | 194 | 389 | 394 | 549 | 468 |
| APS 3 | 247 | 2,493 | 1,632 | 2,086 | 773 | 1,560 | 1,261 | 2,662 | 4743 | 6,697 |
| APS 4 | 142 | 2,023 | 1,547 | 1,521 | 1,566 | 1,660 | 1,585 | 3,687 | 4,583 | 9,104 |
| APS 5 | 157 | 1,316 | 1,067 | 1,072 | 1,528 | 1,389 | 1,655 | 2,916 | 3,584 | 4,128 |
| APS 6 | 241 | 1,321 | 1,305 | 1,213 | 1,634 | 1,795 | 1,797 | 3,129 | 3,352 | 4,305 |
| EL 1 | 140 | 788 | 686 | 673 | 797 | 851 | 1,008 | 1,748 | 1,792 | 2,357 |
| EL 2 | 58 | 360 | 292 | 268 | 323 | 342 | 389 | 565 | 479 | 652 |
| SES 1 | 17 | 158 | 47 | 47 | 57 | 47 | 66 | 64 | 71 | 96 |
| SES 2 | 9 | 31 | 17 | 26 | 14 | 24 | 19 | 19 | 20 | 37 |
| SES 3 | 2 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 10 |
| Total | 2,367 | 11,052 | 9,154 | 9,015 | 8,562 | 9,823 | 10,204 | 18,015 | 22,056 | 30,540 |
Source: APSED
Table A 7: Ongoing APS engagements by age group (2014–15 to 2023–24)
| Age group (years) | 2014 –15 | 2015 –16 | 2016 –17 | 2017 –18 | 2018 –19 | 2019 –20 | 2020 –21 | 2021 –22 | 2022 –23 | 2023 –24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 20 | 75 | 157 | 169 | 127 | 149 | 143 | 160 | 306 | 443 | 651 |
| 20-24 | 701 | 2,022 | 1,813 | 1,749 | 1,478 | 1,785 | 1,962 | 3,053 | 3,569 | 4,203 |
| 25-29 | 633 | 2,533 | 2,101 | 1,938 | 1,835 | 2,126 | 2,144 | 3,577 | 3,908 | 4,845 |
| 30-34 | 317 | 1,795 | 1,362 | 1,429 | 1,288 | 1,467 | 1,549 | 2,689 | 3,106 | 4,233 |
| 35-39 | 166 | 1,299 | 1,001 | 1,095 | 1,046 | 1,240 | 1,281 | 2,380 | 3,010 | 4,345 |
| 40-44 | 163 | 1,062 | 874 | 880 | 861 | 953 | 967 | 1,907 | 2,614 | 4,040 |
| 45-49 | 130 | 894 | 719 | 747 | 773 | 854 | 861 | 1,556 | 2,053 | 3,067 |
| 50-54 | 102 | 685 | 592 | 534 | 560 | 638 | 638 | 1,298 | 1,633 | 2,439 |
| 55-59 | 55 | 425 | 379 | 342 | 373 | 428 | 426 | 802 | 1,044 | 1,525 |
| 60 and over | 25 | 180 | 144 | 174 | 199 | 189 | 216 | 447 | 676 | 1,192 |
| Total | 2,367 | 11,052 | 9,154 | 9,015 | 8,562 | 9,823 | 10,204 | 18,015 | 22,056 | 30,540 |
Source: APSED
Table A 8 covers ongoing APS separations by classification. In 2023–24, there were 11,280 separations of ongoing APS employees. The number decreased from 11,856 in 2022–23. Unlike engagements, separations have remained relatively steady since 2014–15.
Table A 8: Ongoing APS separations by classification (2014–15 to 2023–24)
| Classification | 2014–15 | 2015–16 | 2016–17 | 2017–18 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2020–21 | 2021–22 | 2022–23 | 2023–24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trainee | 38 | 59 | 61 | 75 | 120 | 80 | 70 | 93 | 167 | 152 |
| Graduate | 38 | 42 | 60 | 59 | 91 | 114 | 59 | 96 | 115 | 107 |
| APS 1 | 85 | 59 | 61 | 69 | 51 | 49 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 34 |
| APS 2 | 331 | 279 | 241 | 306 | 246 | 249 | 213 | 240 | 213 | 172 |
| APS 3 | 1,139 | 991 | 1,190 | 1219 | 1,048 | 911 | 821 | 1,076 | 1,372 | 1,640 |
| APS 4 | 1,748 | 1,554 | 1,689 | 1,886 | 2,225 | 1,573 | 1,511 | 1,944 | 2,226 | 2,493 |
| APS 5 | 1,391 | 1,285 | 1,434 | 1,478 | 1,785 | 1,292 | 1,233 | 1,750 | 1,791 | 1,461 |
| APS 6 | 2,302 | 1,910 | 2,122 | 2,319 | 2,886 | 2,248 | 2,058 | 2,644 | 2,618 | 2,320 |
| EL 1 | 2,191 | 2,275 | 1,757 | 1,734 | 2,225 | 1,850 | 1,490 | 2,082 | 2,117 | 1,811 |
| EL 2 | 1,148 | 1,082 | 882 | 920 | 1,175 | 1,249 | 780 | 949 | 965 | 842 |
| SES 1 | 170 | 177 | 174 | 160 | 178 | 148 | 177 | 172 | 164 | 158 |
| SES 2 | 72 | 70 | 65 | 65 | 64 | 71 | 59 | 49 | 64 | 74 |
| SES 3 | 13 | 14 | 20 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 21 | 18 | 16 |
| Total | 10,666 | 9,797 | 9,756 | 10,308 | 12,109 | 9,847 | 8,509 | 11,142 | 11,856 | 11,280 |
Source: APSED
At 30 June 2024, the most common classification in the APS was APS 6. This continued the trend of the last decade, during which this level has consistently been the most common classification (Table A 9).
Table A 9: Number of APS employees by base classification at 30 June (2015 to 2024)
| Classification | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trainee | 221 | 581 | 618 | 764 | 565 | 615 | 639 | 986 | 950 | 668 |
| Graduate | 1,196 | 1,571 | 1,686 | 1,487 | 1,452 | 1,601 | 1,563 | 1,960 | 2,029 | 2,015 |
| APS 1 | 4,351 | 3,901 | 2,903 | 2,676 | 2,840 | 2,203 | 1,554 | 2,936 | 2,668 | 2,714 |
| APS 2 | 4,674 | 5,003 | 4,605 | 4,701 | 4,415 | 6,233 | 4,675 | 4,090 | 4,169 | 4,548 |
| APS 3 | 19,397 | 20,763 | 18,419 | 17,208 | 15,320 | 15,717 | 16,812 | 14,743 | 15,984 | 13,866 |
| APS 4 | 30,638 | 30,579 | 29,492 | 29,482 | 28,093 | 27,315 | 28,289 | 27,387 | 28,434 | 33,588 |
| APS 5 | 20,671 | 20,930 | 21,236 | 20,854 | 20,593 | 21,150 | 21,704 | 22,366 | 24,284 | 27,011 |
| APS 6 | 31,248 | 32,669 | 33,124 | 32,973 | 32,972 | 33,980 | 34,323 | 36,134 | 39,002 | 43,264 |
| EL 1 | 25,852 | 25,483 | 25,542 | 25,656 | 26,013 | 26,942 | 28,495 | 31,616 | 34,329 | 37,923 |
| EL 2 | 11,525 | 11,492 | 11,666 | 11,755 | 11,728 | 11,817 | 12,677 | 13,945 | 15,086 | 16,318 |
| SES 1 | 1,822 | 1,966 | 1,978 | 2,023 | 2,048 | 2,059 | 2,086 | 2,229 | 2,357 | 2,541 |
| SES 2 | 530 | 543 | 558 | 553 | 579 | 595 | 624 | 657 | 679 | 726 |
| SES 3 | 116 | 126 | 121 | 125 | 139 | 133 | 136 | 141 | 158 | 161 |
| Total | 152,241 | 155,607 | 151,948 | 150,257 | 146,757 | 150,360 | 153,577 | 159,190 | 170,129 | 185,343 |
Source: APSED
Age profile
At 30 June 2024, the average age of APS employees was 43.0, down from 43.1 at 30 June 2023. The proportion of APS employees under 30 years of age continued a slow upwards trend to 15.8%, up from 15.3% in June 2023 (Table A 10).
Table A 10: Number of APS employees by age group at 30 June (2015 to 2024)
| Age group (years) | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 20 | 458 | 577 | 406 | 456 | 430 | 570 | 580 | 670 | 841 | 892 |
| 20-24 | 5,237 | 5,885 | 5,508 | 5,526 | 5,314 | 6,293 | 6,734 | 7,380 | 8,560 | 9,604 |
| 25-29 | 14,393 | 14,321 | 13,650 | 12,946 | 12,584 | 13,125 | 13,685 | 14,699 | 16,638 | 18,790 |
| 30-34 | 20,148 | 20,259 | 19,175 | 18,431 | 17,213 | 17,048 | 17,114 | 17,657 | 18,966 | 20,876 |
| 35-39 | 20,588 | 21,307 | 21,260 | 21,126 | 20,679 | 20,984 | 21,364 | 21,483 | 22,596 | 24,383 |
| 40-44 | 22,087 | 21,982 | 21,283 | 20,853 | 20,751 | 20,965 | 21,577 | 22,456 | 24,094 | 26,490 |
| 45-49 | 21,058 | 21,706 | 21,788 | 21,905 | 21,709 | 22,010 | 21,885 | 22,046 | 22,958 | 24,934 |
| 50-54 | 22,354 | 22,174 | 21,261 | 20,634 | 19,976 | 20,148 | 20,818 | 21,884 | 23,127 | 24,585 |
| 55-59 | 15,409 | 16,169 | 16,361 | 16,698 | 16,403 | 16,759 | 16,812 | 16,980 | 17,420 | 18,541 |
| 60 and over | 10,509 | 11,227 | 112,56 | 11,682 | 11,698 | 12,458 | 13,008 | 13,935 | 14,929 | 16,248 |
| Total | 152,241 | 155,607 | 151,948 | 150,257 | 146,757 | 150,360 | 153,577 | 159,190 | 170,129 | 185,343 |
Source: APSED
Gender
The proportion of women in the APS has increased over the past decade. During the 2023-24 year, the proportion of women has remained stable at 60.4% (Table A 11).
Table A 11: Gender representation in the APS at 30 June (2015 to 2024)
| Gender | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 63,204 | 63,678 | 62,264 | 61,467 | 59,137 | 60,078 | 60,968 | 62,678 | 66,789 | 72,488 |
| Women | 88,957 | 91,843 | 89,590 | 88,675 | 87,482 | 90,121 | 92,359 | 96,144 | 102,747 | 111,972 |
| X | . | . | 94 | 115 | 138 | 161 | 250 | 368 | 593 | 883 |
| Total | 152,241 | 155,607 | 151,948 | 150,257 | 146,757 | 150,360 | 153,577 | 159,190 | 170,129 | 185,343 |
Source: APSED
The proportion of women is higher than that of men from the APS 1 classification up to and including Senior Executive Service (SES) Band 2. A slightly lower proportion of women remains at the SES Band 3 level, although their number continues to rise (Table A 12).
Table A 12: Gender representation by classification at 30 June (2015 to 2024)
| Classification | Gender | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trainee | Men | 112 | 274 | 319 | 405 | 252 | 295 | 297 | 484 | 548 | 333 |
| Women | 109 | 306 | 297 | 357 | 312 | 319 | 336 | 493 | 398 | 319 | |
| Graduate | Men | 626 | 791 | 832 | 753 | 743 | 810 | 770 | 1,004 | 1,111 | 1,154 |
| Women | 569 | 779 | 849 | 730 | 699 | 784 | 785 | 944 | 904 | 844 | |
| APS 1 | Men | 1,451 | 1,219 | 969 | 898 | 908 | 716 | 519 | 868 | 773 | 803 |
| Women | 2,899 | 2,680 | 1,934 | 1,778 | 1,931 | 1,482 | 1,027 | 2,056 | 1,884 | 1,895 | |
| APS 2 | Men | 1,803 | 1,975 | 1,833 | 1,866 | 1,747 | 2,415 | 1,781 | 1,676 | 1,794 | 1,956 |
| Women | 2,870 | 3,027 | 2,770 | 2,831 | 2,661 | 3,808 | 2,885 | 2,395 | 2,362 | 2,562 | |
| APS 3 | Men | 6,506 | 7,001 | 6,238 | 5,821 | 5,250 | 5,297 | 5,771 | 5,178 | 5,640 | 5,156 |
| Women | 12,884 | 13,754 | 12,176 | 11,373 | 10,049 | 10,408 | 10,995 | 9,487 | 10,132 | 8,536 | |
| APS 4 | Men | 9,574 | 9,384 | 9,053 | 9,180 | 8,726 | 8,503 | 8,866 | 8,469 | 9,143 | 11,015 |
| Women | 21,045 | 21,175 | 20,419 | 20,274 | 19,342 | 18,777 | 19,373 | 18,844 | 19,168 | 22,295 | |
| APS 5 | Men | 8,319 | 8,339 | 8,379 | 8,171 | 7,909 | 7,977 | 8,152 | 8,193 | 8,855 | 9,873 |
| Women | 12,342 | 12,582 | 12,846 | 12,671 | 12,670 | 13,150 | 13,517 | 14,128 | 15,368 | 17,032 | |
| APS 6 | Men | 13,813 | 14,253 | 14,230 | 14,078 | 13,695 | 14,098 | 14,163 | 14,642 | 15,433 | 16,841 |
| Women | 17,413 | 18,394 | 18,869 | 18,869 | 19,246 | 19,845 | 20,110 | 21,430 | 23,485 | 26,286 | |
| EL 1 | Men | 12,899 | 12,513 | 12,465 | 12,425 | 12,280 | 12,478 | 12,908 | 13,916 | 14,841 | 16,188 |
| Women | 12,941 | 12,957 | 13,063 | 13,216 | 13,716 | 14,445 | 15,564 | 17,663 | 19,442 | 21,662 | |
| EL 2 | Men | 6,637 | 6,419 | 6,433 | 6,377 | 6,144 | 6,040 | 6,323 | 6,805 | 7,170 | 7,615 |
| Women | 4,882 | 5,065 | 5,224 | 5,369 | 5,575 | 5,767 | 6,344 | 7,128 | 7,898 | 8,677 | |
| SES 1 | Men | 1,054 | 1,091 | 1,102 | 1,080 | 1,054 | 1,031 | 999 | 1,022 | 1,063 | 1,127 |
| Women | 767 | 874 | 875 | 942 | 992 | 1,026 | 1,083 | 1,201 | 1,289 | 1,405 | |
| SES 2 | Men | 336 | 338 | 340 | 340 | 351 | 345 | 343 | 346 | 335 | 345 |
| Women | 194 | 205 | 218 | 213 | 228 | 250 | 280 | 309 | 342 | 380 | |
| SES 3 | Men | 74 | 81 | 71 | 73 | 78 | 73 | 76 | 75 | 83 | 82 |
| Women | 42 | 45 | 50 | 52 | 61 | 60 | 60 | 66 | 75 | 79 |
Source: APSED
Diversity
Table A 13 presents the proportion of APS employees identifying in each diversity group within their agency’s human resources system.
Table A 13: Proportion of APS employees by diversity group at 30 June (2015 to 2024)
| Diversity group | 2015 (%) | 2016 (%) | 2017 (%) | 2018 (%) | 2019 (%) | 2020 (%) | 2021 (%) | 2022 (%) | 2023 (%) | 2024 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women | 58.4 | 59.0 | 59.0 | 59.0 | 59.6 | 59.9 | 60.1 | 60.4 | 60.4 | 60.4 |
| First Nations | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 3.4 |
| People with disability | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 5.3 | 5.4 |
| Born outside of Australia | 22.3 | 22.3 | 22.4 | 22.4 | 22.4 | 22.4 | 22.8 | 23.1 | 24.0 | 24.8 |
| First language spoken not exclusively English | 21.0 | 21.3 | 21.7 | 22.0 | 22.2 | 22.4 | 22.9 | 23.5 | 24.6 | 25.7 |
Source: APSED
Government Employment Statistics
In addition to employment data published by the APSC via APSED, Finance and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) publish figures relating to the number of staff employed by the Commonwealth Government.
Finance publishes Average Staffing Level (ASL) estimates for each financial year through the federal Budget process of allocating resources for the General Government Sector (GGS), which includes both APS and non-APS entities.
The ABS publishes government employee estimates via the Public Sector Employment and Earnings (PSEE) labour force data.
Table A 14 shows headcount published via APSED as at the end of each financial year (30 June) aligned with the PSEE estimates where available, and the historical ASL estimates for the respective financial year.
Table A 14: APS employee headcount by employment category, GGS historical estimates of ASL, and Commonwealth Public Sector employment estimates by financial year
| Measure | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employee headcount (APSED) as at 30 June | Ongoing | 136,538 | 137,894 | 137,288 | 136,210 | 132,240 | 132,257 | 133,976 | 140,850 | 151,058 | 170,186 |
| Non-ongoing | 15,703 | 17,713 | 14,660 | 14,047 | 14,517 | 18,103 | 19,601 | 18,340 | 19,071 | 15,157 | |
| Total | 152,241 | 155,607 | 151,948 | 150,257 | 146,757 | 150,360 | 153,577 | 159,190 | 170,129 | 185,343 | |
| Average Staffing Level, (Finance), Financial Year | Total (exc. ADF) |
166,261 | 165,648 | 166,181 | 165,276 | 165,491 | 166,762 | 168,912 | 173,142 | 181,122 | 191,861 |
| Total (inc. ADF) |
243,135 | 243,047 | 244,495 | 243,773 | 244,306 | 247,302 | 250,583 | 253,777 | 264,825 | 272,924 | |
| Employment and Earnings (Commonwealth)-ABS | Public Sector Employment and Earnings | 350,300 | Not yet available | ||||||||
| Survey of Employment and Earning | 235,300 | 243,300 | 239,800 | 240,700 | 242,100 | 246,000 | 247,600 | 254,000 | |||
Sources:
- APSED
- Federal Budget 2024-25 Budget Paper No. 4, Historical Estimates of Average Staffing Levels of Agencies in the Australian General Government Sector. Page 181, Staffing of Agencies, Budget Paper 4, Budget 2024-25
- ABS Public sector employment and earnings, Commonwealth Government measure. Figures up to and including 2021-22 were collected via the Survey of Employment and Earnings (SEE), which used a different collection methodology (sample survey) to the current Public Sector Employment and Earnings (Single Touch Payroll). June 2024 PSEE figures not available at time of print.
APS headcount, Average Staffing Level, and ABS Public Sector Employment and Earnings are related, though not directly comparable due to 3 important distinctions:
- employee population inclusions
- adjustment for work hours
- time period measured.
Employee population inclusions
APSED headcount only includes staff employed under the Public Service Act 1999 (PS Act). ASL in the federal Budget covers the wider General Government Sector (GGS). The Public Sector Employment and Earnings (PSEE) figures published by the ABS have a span beyond the GGS, covering public financial corporations and public non-financial corporations.
The GGS includes both APS and non-APS agencies. Examples of non-APS agencies within the GGS include Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and the Australian Federal Police. Non-APS agencies are not included in APSED reporting.
Population inclusions can differ within an agency. For some agencies it is possible to employ staff under both the PS Act and other enabling legislation. For example, the Australian Digital Health Agency may employ staff under the PS Act, or under the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability (Establishing the Australian Digital Health Agency) Rule 16, section 64. In this case, ASL will cover staff covered by both Acts, while APSED headcount will only cover staff employed under the PS Act.
Examples of public financial corporations include the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Australia Reinsurance Pool Corporation, and Housing Australia. Public non-financial corporations include entities such as Australia Post, Snowy Hydro Limited, Airservices Australia, and NBN Co Limited. These are not included in APSED reporting, nor are they included in federal Budget staffing estimates.
A full list of agencies and their enabling legislation is published by the Department of Finance at List of Commonwealth entities and companies.
This list provides the Economic Sector of government entities (e.g. General Government, Public Financial and Non-Financial Corporations).
Adjustment for work hours
APSED figures are based on headcount, which is a count of the number of employees, with no adjustment for the hours worked. Each part-time and casual employee is counted as one employee, irrespective of the number of hours they work. ABS PSEE estimates count the number of employees without adjusting for work hours.
In contrast, Finance’s ASL measure does adjust for hours worked, with part-time and casual employees counted using their working hours as a proportion of a standard work week. For example, 2 part-time employees who work half a week each would be counted as 0.5 ASL each and would total 1 ASL. This is in contrast to headcount which would count each of these employees, totalling 2.
Time period measured
Headcount is a point in time count of the number of employees, whereas ASL takes into account the staffing across the year.
For example, an organisation that had changing staff numbers over the year as per Table A 15 would have an ASL of 100 (average staffing level over the 12 months).
However, the headcount (as at 30 June) would be zero, because the headcount only measures a point in time.
Table A 15: Example staffing profile
| Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 200 | 0 | 100 | 200 | 0 | 100 | 200 | 0 | 100 | 200 | 0 |
Table A 16 provides an outline of the count method and included population of these statistics.
Table A 16: Summary of government employment measures – count method and population inclusions
| Measure and Source | Count method | Population Inclusions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Government Sector (GGS) | PFC and NFC | |||
| APS GGS | Non-APS GGS | |||
| APSED - APSC | Headcount | Yes | No | No |
| Average Staffing Level estimates- DoF | ASL | Yes | Yes | No |
| Public Sector Employment Earnings - ABS | Headcount | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Count methods:
- Headcount: staff count not adjusted for work hours per person (2 x 0.5 part-time employees = 2). Count as at a point in time.
- ASL: staff count adjusted for part-time/casual work hours (2 x 0.5 part-time employees = 1). Average over reporting period.
Population inclusion abbreviations:
- GGS: General Government Sector (e.g. APS: Australian Taxation Office, Services Australia, Home Affairs and non-APS: Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australian Federal Police)
- PFC: Public Financial Corporations (e.g. Reserve Bank of Australia, Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation, Housing Australia)
- PNFC: Public Non-Financial Corporations (e.g. Australia Post, Australian Rail Track Corporation Limited, Snowy Hydro Limited, Australian Naval Infrastructure Pty Ltd, Airservices Australia, NBN Co Limited).
Personal and miscellaneous leave
APS agencies provide aggregated figures on personal leave (that is, sick and carer’s leave) and miscellaneous leave (that is, bereavement, compassionate and emergency leave). These figures include instances of leave with or without a supporting medical certificate, whether paid or unpaid. Prior to 2023 this form of leave was reported in the State of the Service Report as unscheduled absences. As some of this leave may be scheduled, a more accurate term is personal and miscellaneous leave.
The personal and miscellaneous leave measure incorporates the staffing size of agencies when calculating the absence rate. In practice, every agency’s personal and miscellaneous leave days and full-time equivalent (FTE) are summed, and the personal and miscellaneous leave rate is calculated by dividing the total number of personal and miscellaneous leave days by the total FTE of the APS.
|
APS personal & miscellaneous leave rate =
|
Total days of personal & miscellaneous leave across the APS Total FTE of the APS |
Table A 17 compares the personal and miscellaneous leave rate since 2017–18 across the whole-of-APS and broken down by agency size. During 2023–24, personal and miscellaneous leave rates slightly decreased across the APS and across small and medium agency size groups, with the rate remaining the same as last year across large agencies.
Table A 17: Personal and miscellaneous leave rates (2017–18 to 2023–24) by agency size (expressed as an average number of days)
| Year | APS | Small | Medium | Large |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | 13.3 | 11.0 | 11.9 | 13.5 |
| 2018–19 | 13.4 | 11.0 | 11.7 | 13.7 |
| 2019–20 | 13.1 | 11.2 | 11.4 | 13.3 |
| 2020–21 | 12.2 | 9.8 | 10.5 | 12.5 |
| 2021–22 | 12.8 | 10.1 | 11.1 | 13.1 |
| 2022–23 | 13.2 | 11.3 | 11.9 | 13.4 |
| 2023–24 | 13.1 | 11.1 | 11.4 | 13.4 |
Table A 18 provides personal and miscellaneous leave use and rates by agency for 2022–23 and 2023–24 (expressed as an average number of days). Note that for small agencies, a small number of individuals with a large amount of leave taken can influence the personal and miscellaneous leave rate substantially.
Table A 18: Sick, carer’s leave, miscellaneous and total personal and miscellaneous leave rate by agency (2022–23 and 2023–24) (expressed as an average number of days)
| Agency name | Sick leave 2023–24 | Carer’s leave 2023–24 | Miscellaneous leave 2023–24 | Total personal and miscellaneous leave rate 2023–24 | Total personal and miscellaneous leave rate 2022–23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aboriginal Hostels Limited | 12.3 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 13.8 | 16.3 |
| Administrative Appeals Tribunal | 9.4 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 11.0 | 11.6 |
| Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission | 11.5 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 13.4 | 11.8 |
| Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry | 10.2 | 2.3 | 0.4 | 12.9 | 13.3 |
| Attorney-General's | 9.0 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 10.8 | 10.6 |
| Australian Bureau of Statistics | 9.3 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 11.7 | 12.4 |
| Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research | 10.3 | 4.4 | 2.5 | 17.2 | 12.4 |
| Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care | 7.2 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 8.6 | 11.6 |
| Australian Communications and Media Authority | 9.3 | 2.1 | 0.6 | 12.0 | 12.6 |
| Australian Competition and Consumer Commission | 7.0 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 8.6 | 11.8 |
| Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission | 6.2 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 9.3 | 11.5 |
| Australian Digital Health Agency | 8.0 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 9.3 | 12.2 |
| Australian Electoral Commission | 8.1 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 9.4 | 12.0 |
| Australian Financial Security Authority | 8.8 | 2.1 | 0.4 | 11.3 | 11.2 |
| Australian Fisheries Management Authority | 6.2 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 7.7 | 8.8 |
| Australian Human Rights Commission | 6.8 | 1.7 | 0.6 | 9.0 | 6.0 |
| Australian Information Commissioner | 11.7 | 0.0 | 0.8 | 12.5 | 9.0 |
| Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies | 11.5 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 14.2 | 14.1 |
| Australian Institute of Family Studies | 4.4 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 6.2 | 9.3 |
| Australian Institute of Health and Welfare | 9.0 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 11.1 | 9.5 |
| Australian National Audit Office | 8.8 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 11.1 | 13.1 |
| Australian National Maritime Museum | 6.2 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 7.8 | 8.1 |
| Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority | 8.1 | 2.5 | 0.5 | 11.1 | 9.3 |
| Australian Public Service Commission | 7.1 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 9.0 | 10.1 |
| Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency | 6.3 | 1.9 | 1.0 | 9.2 | 9.5 |
| Australian Research Council | 8.7 | 2.1 | 2.7 | 13.5 | 11.9 |
| Australian Skills Quality Authority | 10.5 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 12.5 | 12.8 |
| Australian Submarine Agency* | 5.1 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 6.4 | |
| Australian Taxation Office | 9.4 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 11.6 | 12.0 |
| Australian Trade and Investment Commission | 8.8 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 11.8 | 5.8 |
| Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre | 7.5 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 11.5 | 9.5 |
| Australian Transport Safety Bureau | 8.1 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 9.7 | 11.8 |
| Australian War Memorial | 8.1 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 10.5 | 12.4 |
| Bureau of Meteorology | 5.8 | 2.1 | 0.2 | 8.1 | 9.2 |
| Cancer Australia | 8.4 | 1.5 | 4.4 | 14.2 | 15.2 |
| Clean Energy Regulator | 9.3 | 2.6 | 6.9 | 18.9 | 13.8 |
| Climate Change Authority | 6.7 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 8.6 | 8.7 |
| Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water | 7.1 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 8.0 | 5.4 |
| Comcare | 9.2 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 11.0 | 13.1 |
| Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions | 6.8 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 8.6 | 8.8 |
| Commonwealth Ombudsman | 14.4 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 17.3 | 14.7 |
| Defence | 9.8 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 11.9 | 12.4 |
| Defence Housing Australia | 8.9 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 11.8 | 11.8 |
| Digital Transformation Agency | 6.7 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 8.6 | 11.1 |
| Education | 8.6 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 |
| Employment and Workplace Relations | 9.5 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 11.9 | 11.1 |
| Fair Work Commission | 9.3 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 11.6 | 11.1 |
| Fair Work Ombudsman | 9.5 | 2.2 | 0.5 | 12.2 | 11.3 |
| Federal Court of Australia | 6.9 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 7.2 | 12.0 |
| Finance | 8.5 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 10.5 | 10.9 |
| Food Standards Australia New Zealand | 6.6 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 8.5 | 11.4 |
| Foreign Affairs and Trade | 8.1 | 2.6 | 0.2 | 10.9 | 10.7 |
| Future Fund Management Agency | 2.7 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 4.0 | 4.9 |
| Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority | 12.9 | 2.2 | 1.7 | 16.8 | 13.9 |
| Health | 9.7 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 11.6 | 12.0 |
| Home Affairs | 11.8 | 3.0 | 0.4 | 15.2 | 15.4 |
| Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority | 7.6 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 9.6 | 16.0 |
| Industry, Science and Resources | 9.9 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 11.5 | 9.1 |
| Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts | 8.8 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 10.7 | 12.4 |
| Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security | 8.1 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 11.2 | 16.5 |
| Inspector-General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman | 5.2 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 9.8 | 7.2 |
| Murray–Darling Basin Authority | 7.8 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 14.8 | 13.2 |
| Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House | 8.4 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 9.9 | 11.3 |
| National Anti-Corruption Commission* | 3.7 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 4.3 | |
| National Archives of Australia | 13.2 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 14.9 | 16.0 |
| National Blood Authority | 9.6 | 2.4 | 0.2 | 12.2 | 13.7 |
| National Capital Authority** | 5.0 | ||||
| National Disability Insurance Agency | 12.2 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 15.4 | 14.6 |
| National Emergency Management Agency | 10.3 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 12.8 | 10.6 |
| National Film and Sound Archive | 8.8 | 1.5 | 5.6 | 15.9 | 11.0 |
| National Health and Medical Research Council | 9.5 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 11.5 | 11.6 |
| National Health Funding Body | 7.6 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 9.3 | 7.0 |
| National Indigenous Australians Agency | 13.1 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 16.3 | 15.6 |
| National Library of Australia | 11.9 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 14.5 | 14.7 |
| National Mental Health Commission | 7.9 | 1.6 | 3.6 | 13.1 | 13.0 |
| National Museum of Australia | 10.5 | 1.9 | 0.3 | 12.7 | 14.1 |
| National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority | 6.6 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 7.7 | 10.4 |
| National Portrait Gallery | 10.9 | 1.4 | 0.3 | 12.6 | 13.1 |
| NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission | 7.8 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 10.1 | 12.2 |
| Office of National Intelligence | 8.6 | 3.4 | 0.3 | 12.2 | 11.2 |
| Organ and Tissue Authority | 10.0 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 12.2 | 11.5 |
| Parliamentary Counsel | 10.1 | 2.7 | 0.6 | 13.4 | 13.6 |
| Prime Minister and Cabinet | 8.6 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 10.6 | 9.7 |
| Productivity Commission | 6.2 | 2.1 | 0.2 | 8.6 | 9.0 |
| Professional Services Review | 7.9 | 1.1 | 1.5 | 10.5 | 9.2 |
| Safe Work Australia | 12.6 | 2.5 | 0.3 | 15.4 | 15.8 |
| Services Australia | 14.8 | 2.5 | 0.7 | 18.0 | 17.6 |
| Social Services | 11.4 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 13.7 | 15.0 |
| Sport Integrity Australia | 6.9 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 8.3 | 9.5 |
| Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency | 11.0 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 13.5 | 10.3 |
| Torres Strait Regional Authority | 13.2 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 17.3 | 25.2 |
| Treasury | 9.4 | 1.7 | 0.4 | 11.5 | 10.8 |
| Veterans' Affairs | 12.8 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 15.1 | 13.7 |
| Workplace Gender Equality Agency | 6.4 | 1.3 | 0.2 | 7.9 | 9.8 |
| APS | 10.6 | 2.0 | 0.5 | 13.1 | 13.2 |
*Total personal and miscellaneous leave rate for 2022-23 was not available as agency was not established until 1 July 2023.
** Data was not provided by agency.