White collar future
GEELONG is riding a health care and social services boom, adding more than 5000 jobs in the sector over a decade.
Census data has confirmed the city’s stunning economic transformation in recent years, with its blue-collar base swamped by the rise of the health, service and education sectors.
Health care and social assistance jobs soared more than 56 per cent and rises of more than a third were also seen in services such as financial and insurance, accommodation and food, education and training and public administration.
GEELONG is riding a health care and social services boom, adding more than 5000 jobs in the sector over a decade.
Census data has confirmed the city’s stunning economic transformation in recent years, with its blue-collar base swamped by the rise of the health, service and education sectors.
Health care and social assistance jobs soared more than 56 per cent in the City of Greater Geelong in the decade to 2016, official statistics reveal.
Rises of more than a third were also seen in services such as financial and insurance, accommodation and food, education and training and public administration.
The key growth industries are largely replicated across the G21 region, which stretches out to four other regional council areas, including ColacOtway.
The city’s strong population growth has also been captured through the rise of the construction industry, which grew by 35 per cent from 2006 to 2016.
The service industry expan- sion has offset a huge downturn in the manufacturing sector, which plunged 37.2 per cent on the back of large-scale losses at Alcoa and Ford.
The number of people employed during the decade grew from 86,148 to 103,580 — a rise of 20.2 per cent.
That figure is above the rate of population growth during the same period.
Demographer Bernard Salt said outside of the capital cities, the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, Geelong was booming in a key indicator.
Geelong had added 8500 extra workers aged from 25-50, t opping the market ahead of Darwin (6400) and Melton (2700).
However, the 2016 Census reveals a relatively low (53.3 per cent) of workers were employed full-time — four points below the state and national averages.
Jude Walker, from the Geelong Region Local Learning Employment Network, is working on analysing the data at a micro-level.
“The growth we are seeing is no longer restricted to just one or two industries, but is spread across a range of sectors and this is very good for the economic and social health of the region,” the market analyst and futurist said.
“We need to ensure that our education and training system is adequately preparing young people and career changers for work in a dynamic and changing labour market.”
Geelong Region LLEN plans to release further information over the coming months that touch on where people live and work.