Retail Trade

Summary

Retail Trade is the second largest employing industry. Around 9.7% of workers have their main job in this industry.

Retail Trade businesses are mainly involved in the purchase and onselling of goods to the general public. They usually trade from shop fronts that attract high numbers of walk-in customers, however the industry includes an increasing number of businesses involved in online retailing.

Many jobs are lower skilled and on the job training is common. Around 61% of workers do not have post-school qualifications.

Around half of those with their main job in this industry work full-time hours.

Average earnings are $795 per week, lower the all industries average of $1,200.

Employment

Employment in the Retail Trade industry grew over the 20 years to November 2022.

The number of workers:

• fell by 34,600 (or 2.5%) over the last quarter
• grew by 45,600 (or 3.5%) over the last year.

Quarterly employment update, Retail Trade industry

Outlook

Employment in Retail Trade is projected to grow by 55,100 (or 4.3%) over the five years to November 2026.

Employment levels, past and projected, Retail Trade

Sectors

Supermarket and Grocery Stores is the largest sector in the Retail Trade industry, employing 25.5% of workers.

Employment by sector, Retail Trade industry

Occupations

Largest employing occupations

Sales Assistants (General) is the largest employing occupation in the Retail Trade industry.

The 10 largest employing occupations are shown below. The table shows:

• the number employed in all industries
• the number employed in this industry
• the proportion employed in this industry.

Some occupations are common across a number of industries.

Largest employing occupations, Retail Trade industry

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, four quarter average, 2021.

Related occupations

The Wholesale Trade industry employs workers in a range of occupations.

The table below shows related occupations by ANZSCO Skill Level (Skill Level 1 is the highest skill level). This includes occupations that:

• contribute a large share of industry employment (account for at least 3% of industry employment)
• have a large share of workers in this industry (at least 5% of workers in an occupation).

These thresholds were used as a guide only and a number refinements were made to the list of occupations included.

The table shows the total number of people employed in each occupation as well as the number and proportion employed in this industry at the time of the 2016 ABS Census.

• In most cases, 6-digit ANZSCO occupations are shown. This is the most detailed level of ANZSCO.
• 4-digit occupations are shown where the ANZSCO classification system only has one valid 6-digit occupation.
• The 4-digit employment figures will differ from the figures shown in the Largest employment occupations table above because the figures have come from different data sources.

Expand or collapse each Skill Level button to view related occupations.

Occupations related to Retail Trade industry, by skill level

Data Downloads

Industry profile data

This file contains data for all 19 industries to make comparing industry data easy. Information available includes:

• Industry snapshot data
• Industry employment (20-year time series)
• Industry employment projections
• Industry sector employment
• Top employing occupations by industry

Industry Profile Data November 2022

(95 Kb)

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Occupations related to each Industry, by Skill Level

This spreadsheet lists occupations that are related to each industry by ANZSCO Skill Level.

Related Occupations By Skill Level

(300 Kb)

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Occupation (ANZSCO) to industry (ANZSIC) correspondence

This file maps occupations to industries using the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) and Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC).

Data are sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016 Census.

The purposes of the correspondence are to:

• Identify occupations that contribute a large share of employment to each industry.
• Identify occupations that have a strong association with each industry, even if they do not contribute a large share of employment to the industry.

Useful links

Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) 

The ANZSIC provides a basis for the standardised collection, analysis and dissemination of economic data on an industry basis for Australia and New Zealand. The ANZSIC is a hierarchical industry classification with four levels, namely Divisions (the broadest level), Subdivisions, Groups and Classes (the finest level).

There are 19 Division level industries, most industry data on LMI are displayed at this level. Division level industries provide a broad overall picture of the economy and this level is most suitable for the publication of summary tables in official statistics. 

The Subdivision, Group and Class levels provide increasingly detailed dissections of these categories for the compilation of more specific and detailed statistics. The sector data on LMI is at the Group level. 

For more information on the ANZSIC visit the ABS website. 

Industry links