Social Security Assessors

ANZSCO ID 599515

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
8,100
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
69%
Female Share
77%
Average age
44

Summary

Social Security Assessors assess social welfare claims and entitlements under government legislation and investigate fraud and suspected breaches of legislation.

Tasks

  • Assesses claims for government benefits.


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, Inspectors and Regulatory Officers, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 69% of people employed as Social Security Assessors work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 3 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 40 hours per week in their main job. This is 4 hours less than 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
94.8%
2
Health Care and Social Assistance
2.9%
3
Financial and Insurance Services
0.4%
4
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services
0.3%
5
Other industries
1.1%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

32.6% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

22.1% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

21.5% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

7.4% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

7.3% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

5.9% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

1.8% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

1.5% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Social Security Assessors All Jobs Average
NSW 32.6 31.6
VIC 22.1 25.6
QLD 21.5 20.0
SA 7.4 7.0
WA 7.3 10.8
TAS 5.9 2.0
NT 1.8 1.0
ACT 1.5 1.9


  • Around 50% of Social Security Assessors live outside of capital cities, compared with the all jobs average of 38%.

    Tasmania 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
44
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
77%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Social Security Assessors is 44 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 77% of the workforce. This is 29 percentage points above 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 Social Security Assessors All Jobs Average
15-19 0.6 5.0
20-24 4.1 9.3
25-34 17.0 22.9
35-44 29.1 22.0
45-54 29.9 21.6
55-59 11.5 9.0
60-64 6.1 6.0
65 and Over 1.6 4.2
Median Age 44 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

Relevant work experience is usually needed to work as a Social Security Assessor. Some workers have a Vocational Education and Training (VET) or university qualification in social work or a related field.

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 Local Government and Public Sector 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 Social Security Assessors All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 5.4 10.1
Bachelor degree 17.3 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 15.4 11.6
Certificate III/IV 20.5 21.1
Year 12 25.7 18.1
Year 11 5.7 4.8
Year 10 and below 10.0 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 Inspectors and Regulatory Officers who have a good attention to detail, strong people skills and a good work ethic.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 57%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 57%

    Active listening

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

  • 57%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 54%

    Critical thinking

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

  • 54%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 52%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 50%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 45%

    Monitoring

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

  • 43%

    Complex problem solving

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

  • 43%

    Judgment and decision making

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

  • 43%

    Active learning

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

  • 43%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 43%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 43%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 43%

    Time management

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

  • 37%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.

  • 37%

    Systems analysis

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

  • 34%

    Learning strategies

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

  • 34%

    Management of personnel resources

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

  • 30%

    Systems evaluation

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


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 82%

    Customer and personal service

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

  • 63%

    Clerical

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

  • 59%

    English language

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

  • 49%

    Computers and electronics

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

  • 48%

    Psychology

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

  • 45%

    Education and training

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

  • 45%

    Administration and management

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

  • 44%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 39%

    Law and government

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

  • 38%

    Personnel and human resources

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

  • 36%

    Therapy and counselling

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

  • 35%

    Sociology and anthropology

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

  • 33%

    Communications and media

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

  • 33%

    Public safety and security

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

  • 30%

    Philosophy and theology

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

  • 30%

    Foreign language

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

  • 23%

    Transportation

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

  • 23%

    Economics and accounting

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

  • 21%

    Production and processing

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

  • 17%

    Telecommunications

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


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 57%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 57%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 57%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 55%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 55%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 54%

    Inductive reasoning

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

  • 52%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 52%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 52%

    Near vision

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

  • 50%

    Problem spotting

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

  • 46%

    Sorting or ordering

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

  • 43%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 43%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 39%

    Originality

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

  • 39%

    Brainstorming

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

  • 37%

    Flexibility of closure

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

  • 36%

    Mathematics

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

  • 36%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.

  • 30%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 27%

    Finger dexterity

    Put together small parts with your fingers.


Activities

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

  • 67%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 66%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 65%

    Working with the public

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

  • 65%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

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

  • 64%

    Communicating with the public

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

  • 61%

    Planning and prioritising work

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

  • 59%

    Making sense of information and ideas

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

  • 58%

    Communicating within a team

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

  • 56%

    Collecting and organising information

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

  • 54%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 52%

    Making decisions and solving problems

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

  • 50%

    Looking for changes over time

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

  • 50%

    Checking compliance with standards

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

  • 49%

    Documenting or recording information

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

  • 47%

    Scheduling work and activities

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

  • 47%

    Helping and caring for others

    Providing personal assistance, medical attention, or emotional support.

  • 45%

    Providing office support

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

  • 45%

    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%

    Working with computers

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


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.

  • 86%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 81%

    Administrative

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

  • 62%

    Enterprising

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

  • 24%

    Creative

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

  • 19%

    Practical

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

  • 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.
  • 71%

    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.

  • 67%

    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.

  • 62%

    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.

  • 60%

    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.

  • 52%

    Achievement

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

  • 48%

    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.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 97%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 95%

    Contact with people

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

  • 95%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 93%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 91%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 89%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 89%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 89%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 89%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 86%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 84%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 83%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 80%

    Repeating same tasks

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

  • 78%

    Unstructured work

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

  • 77%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 77%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 73%

    Using your hands to handle, control, or feel

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

  • 73%

    Making repetitive motions

    Spend time making repetitive motions.

  • 69%

    Angry or unpleasant people

    Deal with unpleasant, angry, or rude people.

  • 68%

    Loud or uncomfortable sounds

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

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, 43-4061.00 - Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs.


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