Road Traffic Controllers

ANZSCO ID 899923

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
10,300
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
48%
Female Share
24%
Average age
45

Summary

Road Traffic Controllers manually direct road traffic and pedestrian flows on, near, or adjacent to roads during road closures or part road closures due to construction, maintenance or roadside works; public events; or emergency responses using signs and devices to ensure the safety of workers, motorists and pedestrians.

Specialisations: Events Traffic Controller.

Formal qualifications are not usually required to work as a Road Traffic Controller. Although, a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification with traffic control units might be needed.

Tasks

  • Sets up, manages and removes temporary traffic control schemes/signs

  • Directs vehicular and pedestrian traffic around construction zones, accidents or other road disruptions; ensuring the safety of emergency response teams, construction workers and the general public.

  • Handles a Stop-Slow sign, or manages other similar traffic control signs and devices, to direct traffic.

  • Communicates with other road traffic personnel, construction workers and emergency response teams via radio, to provide and receive updates on traffic conditions.

  • Completes site checks and monitors traffic behaviour and/or flow to ensure safety is maintained at all times.

  • Takes instructions from crew leaders, foremen, managers, inspectors, auditors or officials.


Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Other Miscellaneous Labourers, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 48% of people employed as Road Traffic Controllers work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 18 percentage points below the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 45 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Public Administration and Safety
51.7%
2
Construction
19.1%
3
Transport, Postal and Warehousing
8.5%
4
Administrative and Support Services
5.4%
5
Other industries
4.2%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

34.5% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

19.1% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

28.6% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

4.1% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

11.5% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.1% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.6% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

0.4% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Road Traffic Controllers All Jobs Average
NSW 34.5 31.6
VIC 19.1 25.6
QLD 28.6 20.0
SA 4.1 7.0
WA 11.5 10.8
TAS 1.1 2.0
NT 0.6 1.0
ACT 0.4 1.9


  • Around 50% of Road Traffic Controllers live outside of capital cities, compared with the all jobs average of 38%.

    Queensland has a large share of employment relative to its population size.

    The regions with the largest share of workers are:

    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
45
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
24%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Road Traffic Controllers is 45 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 24% of the workforce. This is 24 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 Road Traffic Controllers All Jobs Average
15-19 1.8 5.0
20-24 10.3 9.3
25-34 18.9 22.9
35-44 16.4 22.0
45-54 24.3 21.6
55-59 12.4 9.0
60-64 10.5 6.0
65 and Over 5.3 4.2
Median Age 45 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

Formal qualifications are not usually required to work as a Road Traffic Controller. Although, a Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualification with traffic control units might be needed.

Visit

  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.

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 Road Traffic Controllers All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 0.9 10.1
Bachelor degree 4.4 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 6.7 11.6
Certificate III/IV 27.1 21.1
Year 12 20.4 18.1
Year 11 8.1 4.8
Year 10 and below 32.5 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 Labourers who are reliable, have a good work ethic and can work well in a team.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 39%

    Active listening

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

  • 37%

    Monitoring

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

  • 37%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 36%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 36%

    Critical thinking

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

  • 36%

    Judgment and decision making

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

  • 36%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 36%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 29%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 27%

    Complex problem solving

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

  • 25%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 25%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 23%

    Active learning

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

  • 23%

    Time management

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

  • 21%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 20%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 14%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 13%

    Learning strategies

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

  • 13%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 11%

    Systems evaluation

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


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 47%

    Customer and personal service

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

  • 42%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 36%

    English language

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

  • 28%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 25%

    Law and government

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

  • 20%

    Personnel and human resources

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

  • 19%

    Clerical

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

  • 19%

    Communications and media

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

  • 19%

    Administration and management

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

  • 19%

    Education and training

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

  • 18%

    Transportation

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

  • 14%

    Therapy and counselling

    Diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and career counselling and guidance.

  • 12%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 11%

    Computers and electronics

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

  • 9%

    Foreign language

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

  • 9%

    Philosophy and theology

    Philosophical systems and religions, including their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and impact on society.

  • 9%

    Telecommunications

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

  • 8%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 8%

    Geography

    Describing land, sea, and air, including their physical characteristics, locations, how they work together, and the location of plant, animal, and human life.

  • 6%

    Medicine and dentistry

    Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 52%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 45%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 45%

    Problem spotting

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

  • 45%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 43%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 43%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 41%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 41%

    Trunk strength

    Use your abdominal and lower back muscles a number of times without 'giving out' or fatiguing.

  • 39%

    Near vision

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

  • 37%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 37%

    Inductive reasoning

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

  • 36%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.

  • 36%

    Reaction time

    Quickly move your hand, finger, or foot when a sound, light, picture or something else appears.

  • 34%

    Sorting or ordering

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

  • 30%

    Auditory attention

    Pay attention to a certain sound when there are other distracting sounds.

  • 29%

    Arm-hand steadiness

    Keep your hand or arm steady.

  • 29%

    Stamina

    Exercise for a long time without getting winded or out of breath.

  • 29%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 27%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 27%

    Manual dexterity

    Quickly move your hand to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.


Activities

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

  • 52%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 50%

    Doing physically active work

    Use your arms, legs and whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling objects.

  • 49%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 45%

    Communicating within a team

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

  • 45%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 44%

    Negotiating and resolving conflicts

    Handling complaints and disagreements, and negotiating with people.

  • 43%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

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

  • 42%

    Handling and moving objects

    Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, moving and manipulating objects.

  • 41%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 40%

    Making decisions and solving problems

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

  • 39%

    Communicating with the public

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

  • 36%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

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

  • 36%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 36%

    Planning and prioritising work

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

  • 35%

    Looking for changes over time

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

  • 34%

    Checking compliance with standards

    Deciding whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.

  • 34%

    Assessing and evaluating things

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

  • 31%

    Making sense of information and ideas

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

  • 31%

    Collecting and organising information

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

  • 30%

    Checking for errors or defects

    Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials for errors, problems or defects.


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.

  • 81%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 76%

    Enterprising

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

  • 57%

    Practical

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

  • 29%

    Administrative

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

  • 19%

    Creative

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

  • 14%

    Analytical

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


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 48%

    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.

  • 43%

    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.

  • 43%

    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.

  • 33%

    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.

  • 29%

    Achievement

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

  • 26%

    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%

    Outdoors, exposed to weather

    Work outdoors, exposed to the weather.

  • 96%

    Spend time standing

    Spend time standing at work.

  • 89%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 88%

    Very hot or cold temperatures

    Work in very hot or cold temperatures.

  • 88%

    Exposure to contaminants

    Be exposed to pollutants, gases, dust or odours.

  • 85%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 84%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 82%

    Physically close to people

    Work physically close to other people.

  • 82%

    Contact with people

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

  • 82%

    Walking and running

    Spend time walking and running.

  • 82%

    Consequence of error

    Work where mistakes have serious consequences.

  • 81%

    Loud or uncomfortable sounds

    Be exposed to noises and sounds that are distracting or uncomfortable.

  • 81%

    Wear common protective or safety equipment

    Wear equipment like safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hard hats or life jackets.

  • 78%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 76%

    Making repetitive motions

    Spend time making repetitive motions.

  • 75%

    Unstructured work

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

  • 75%

    Using your hands to handle, control, or feel

    Spend time using your hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools or controls.

  • 74%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 73%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 67%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

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, 33-9091.00 - Crossing Guards.


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