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Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers

ANZSCO ID 1333

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Overview

Snapshot

Employed
17,800
Future Growth
8%
Weekly Earnings
$2,140
Full-Time Share
74%
Female Share
25%
Average age
48
About this data

Summary

Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers plan, organise, direct, control and coordinate the operations of importing, exporting and wholesaling establishments.

Tasks

  • identifying local and overseas business opportunities

  • developing and implementing business plans, and marketing, operating, human resource, pricing and credit policies and procedures

  • determining the mix of products and services to be provided and negotiating conditions of trade

  • liaising with local and overseas suppliers and distributors about orders and products

  • researching regulatory and statutory requirements affecting the importing, exporting, wholesaling and distribution of goods

  • monitoring business performance and preparing estimates, financial statements and reports of operations

  • appointing agents and distributors

  • arranging the shipping of goods into and out of the country

  • overseeing the display and sale of merchandise and preparation of product information for customer service staff and customers

  • implementing after-sales service procedures

Characteristics

Job Type
Managers
Skill Level
Very high skill
ANZSCO Occupation group
1333 Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers This occupation is Current selected
Unemployment Rate
Below average
Industries
Pathway(s)
  • University
  • Vocational Education and Training (VET)
  • Informal or on-the-job
Interests
  • Administrative
  • Enterprising
Physical Demand
  • Sedentary

Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. The latest data are for the five years from November 2021 to November 2026. Over this period, the number of workers:

  • is expected to grow strongly
  • is likely to reach 19,900 by 2026.

    • Source: Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.

    Notes: The number employed includes people who work in this occupation as their main job. People who work in more than one job are counted against the occupation they work the most hours in.

    Employment projections figures are rounded to the nearest 100. Calculations based on these rounded figures may result in differences to the numbers that are displayed on this page. Employment projections data (including occupations) can be downloaded from the Employment Projections page.

Projected Change
8%
(or 1,500 jobs)
From
18,400
in 2021
To
19,900
in 2026

Number of Workers

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.
Year Employment
2011 21,600
2012 20,000
2013 20,500
2014 21,900
2015 16,400
2016 19,600
2017 23,100
2018 20,200
2019 18,000
2020 32,800
2021 18,400
2026 19,900

Source: ABS Labour Force Survey, ABS seasonally adjusted data to November 2021 and Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections to 2026.

Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 81% of people employed as Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 15 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 48 hours per week in their main job. This is 4 hours more than the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Median full-time earnings are $2,140 per week, this is much higher than weekly earnings for all jobs ($1,593).

    Median hourly earnings are $54, this is more than the all jobs median ($41 per hour).

    Sources: Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average. Full-time median earnings and median hourly earnings: ABS, Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021. Compared to all jobs median.

Weekly Earnings (Before Tax)

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.
Earnings Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers All Jobs Average
Full-Time Earnings 2,140 1,593
Total Earnings 0 0

Source: Based on ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2021, Customised Report. Median weekly total cash earnings for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate. Earnings are before tax and include amounts salary sacrificed. Earnings can vary greatly depending on the skills and experience of the worker and the demands of the role. These figures should be used as a guide only, not to determine a wage rate.

Industries

Main industries

1
Wholesale Trade
71.2%
2
Retail Trade
11.7%
3
Manufacturing
3.1%
4
Transport, Postal and Warehousing
2.3%
5
Other industries
11.3%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

34.7% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

29.9% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

17.8% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

6.4% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

8.8% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.2% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.5% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

0.7% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers All Jobs Average
NSW 34.7 31.6
VIC 29.9 25.6
QLD 17.8 20.0
SA 6.4 7.0
WA 8.8 10.8
TAS 1.2 2.0
NT 0.5 1.0
ACT 0.7 1.9


  • Around 72% of Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers live in capital cities, compared with the all jobs average of 62%.

    Victoria and New South Wales have a large share of employment relative to their population size.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Share of workers across Australian states, territories and regions, in this job compared to the all jobs average.

Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
48
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
25%
All Jobs Average is 48%

  • The median age of Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers is 48 years. This is higher than the all jobs average of 40 years.

    A large share of workers are aged 45 to 54 years.

    Females make up 25% of the workforce. This is 23 percentage points below the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers All Jobs Average
15-19 0.3 5.0
20-24 1.7 9.3
25-34 14.6 22.9
35-44 24.0 22.0
45-54 28.7 21.6
55-59 11.9 9.0
60-64 8.7 6.0
65 and Over 10.0 4.2
Median Age 48 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.

Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

Extensive experience or a formal qualification in commerce is needed to work as an Importer, Exporter or Wholesaler. Vocational Education and Training (VET) and university are both common study pathways.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Retail Services and Transport and Logistics Training Package VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 8.0 10.1
Bachelor degree 20.2 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 11.4 11.6
Certificate III/IV 15.5 21.1
Year 12 25.3 18.1
Year 11 5.6 4.8
Year 10 and below 13.9 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.

Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Importers, Exporters and Wholesalers who are motivated, organised and can communicate clearly with a variety of different people.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 57%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 57%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 57%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 57%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 55%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 55%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 55%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 55%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 54%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 50%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 48%

    Management of financial resources

    Figuring out how money is needed to do something, and keeping track of the money that's being spent.

  • 48%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 48%

    Mathematics

    Using maths to solve problems.

  • 48%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 48%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 46%

    Learning strategies

    Figuring out the best way to teach or learn something new.

  • 45%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 45%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 45%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 45%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 64%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 63%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 59%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 59%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 57%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 57%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 50%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 47%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 39%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 38%

    Mechanical

    Machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

  • 33%

    Production and processing

    Raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and ways of making and distributing goods.

  • 29%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 26%

    Chemistry

    Chemical composition, structure, and properties. How chemicals are made, used, mixed, and can change.

  • 25%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

  • 25%

    Transportation

    Moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road.

  • 23%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 22%

    Engineering and technology

    Use engineering, science and technology to design and produce goods and services.

  • 21%

    Physics

    The physical laws of matter, motion and energy, and how they interact through space and time.

  • 20%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 14%

    Foreign language

    Foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 57%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 57%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 57%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 57%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 54%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 52%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 52%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 52%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 50%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 48%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 48%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 48%

    Working with numbers

    Add, subtract, multiply, or divide.

  • 46%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 45%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 45%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 45%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 43%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 41%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.

  • 37%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 37%

    Speed of recognition

    Quickly make sense of and organize things you can see like letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 71%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 67%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 67%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 66%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 64%

    Negotiating and resolving conflicts

    Handling complaints and disagreements, and negotiating with people.

  • 63%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 61%

    Managing payments and orders

    Monitoring and controlling resources and the spending of money.

  • 60%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 58%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

    Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.

  • 56%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 55%

    Collecting and organising information

    Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or checking information or data.

  • 53%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 53%

    Providing office support

    Doing day-to-day office work such as filing and processing paperwork.

  • 51%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

  • 49%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 48%

    Assessing and evaluating things

    Working out the value, importance, or quality of things, services or people.

  • 47%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 45%

    Coming up with systems and processes

    Deciding on goals and figuring out what you need to do to achieve them.

  • 43%

    Documenting or recording information

    Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.

  • 37%

    Estimating amounts, costs and resources

    Working out sizes, distances, amounts, time, costs, resources, or materials needed for a task.

Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 100%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 81%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 48%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

  • 33%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 29%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 19%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.

  • 57%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 57%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 57%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 57%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.

  • 52%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 50%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:

  • 100%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 100%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 100%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 97%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 95%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 90%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 89%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 88%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 85%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 85%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 83%

    Repeating same tasks

    Repeat the same tasks or activities (e.g., key entry) over and over, without stopping.

  • 81%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 80%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 80%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 77%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 77%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 75%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 74%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 71%

    Making repetitive motions

    Spend time making repetitive motions.

  • 68%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 13-1022.00 - Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products.

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