Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia

Australia: Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities was 17.29 in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
17.29
Change on year
up 3.2%
World rank
29th
of 44 countries
All-time high
26.79
in 2005
All-time low
6.73
in 2003
Years of data
20
2002–2021

Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia, 2002–2021

5101520252002201120212002: 6.92003: 6.72004: 7.12005: 26.82006: 23.72007: 25.12008: 21.42009: 21.32010: 22.12011: 23.42012: 20.62013: 20.32014: 212015: 21.32016: 19.92017: 19.22018: 18.92019: 18.72020: 16.82021: 17.3

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

Australia recorded 17.29 for share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in 2021.

The figure is up 3.2% on the previous year and down 26.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia peaked at 26.79 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 6.73, in 2003.

That places Australia 29th out of 44 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 20 years of available data.

Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia, year by year

Annual values for Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia, 2002 to 2021.
Year Value Change
2002 6.86
2003 6.73 -1.9%
2004 7.06 +4.9%
2005 26.79 +279.6%
2006 23.68 -11.6%
2007 25.1 +6.0%
2008 21.41 -14.7%
2009 21.28 -0.6%
2010 22.13 +4.0%
2011 23.44 +5.9%
2012 20.6 -12.1%
2013 20.34 -1.2%
2014 21.01 +3.3%
2015 21.34 +1.6%
2016 19.9 -6.8%
2017 19.23 -3.3%
2018 18.89 -1.8%
2019 18.72 -0.9%
2020 16.77 -10.4%
2021 17.29 +3.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 17.36 6.73 26.79 8
2010s 20.56 18.72 23.44 10
2020s 17.03 16.77 17.29 2

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 26 North Macedonia 22.62 compare
  2. 27 Brazil 22.16 compare
  3. 28 Chile 20.02 compare
  4. 30 United States 13.4 compare
  5. 31 South Africa 11.77 compare
  6. 32 Ireland 11.57 compare

See the full ranking of 44 places →

More work & labour data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia?
Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia was 17.29 in 2021, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 26.79 in 2005.
What is the lowest share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 6.73 in 2003.
How does Australia rank for share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities?
Australia ranks 29th out of 44 countries with data for 2021.
Is share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is down 26.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 28 August 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-persons-outside-the-labour-force-due-to-care-responsibilities/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of persons outside the labour force due to care responsibilities
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
44 places, 570 data points, 1994–2026
Last refreshed

With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. Persons outside the labour force comprise all persons of working age who, during the specified reference period, were not in the labour force (that is, were not employed or unemployed). For more information, refer to the Gender Equality and Non-Discrimination Indicators (GEND) database description.