Transcript UNECE Work Session on Gender Statistics (Geneva, 26-28 April 2010) Session III.

UNECE Work Session on Gender Statistics
(Geneva, 26-28 April 2010)
Session III. Emerging issues in gender statistics
“Time Use in Australia”
Carolyn Ashley
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Australian Time Use Surveys
The supporting paper outlines the survey design for the Australian Time
Use Survey (from a pilot in 1987 to surveys run in 1992, 1997 and
2006).
The ABS publication How Australians Use Their Time (cat. no. 4153.0)
presents results from the 2006 Time Use Survey. Comparisons are
made with results from the 1992 and 1997 surveys.
The survey was conducted by ABS across all States and Territories
and collected information from people aged 15 years and over.
Time use information is important for examining how people allocate
time to activities such as paid and unpaid work, and for analysing issues
relating to gender equality, care giving and balancing family and paid
work responsibilities.
Key Drivers and Benefits
A key driver for the survey was to measure the unpaid economy:
 to understand its value and relationship to the size of the
economy
 to acknowledge the caring and maintaining work of women
 to gain a better understanding of levels of unpaid work.
Particular benefits of the ABS Time Use Survey include the use of:
1. detailed activity based classification groups
2. a framework for examining life balance (as represented by the
categories of time use).
Average Time Spent by
Activity Classification Groups
Activity Classification Groups: Key Gender Issues
Paid work up by around 1:17 a week
 Increase for both men and women
Unpaid work:
 Domestic work
–relatively unchanged for men since 1992
–continued decrease for women, down by 56 minutes a week since 1997
–women have increased household management activities
 Child care
–small increase in physical care by men and women compared with 1997
–apparent increase in playing, reading and talking with child by both men and women
was partly due to a systematic change in coding
 Voluntary work and care
– down slightly for men, unchanged for women
Categories of Time Use
Necessary time
–Sleeping, eating, personal hygiene, dressing, grooming, personal
health care.
Contracted time
–Employment and formal education.
Committed time
–Unpaid work: Housework, meal preparation, household
management, house and grounds maintenance, child care,
shopping for goods and services, voluntary work, caring & helping.
Free time
–Social, cultural and religious activities, outdoor recreation, games
and hobbies, arts and crafts, media use, conversation and other
leisure.
 Note: Associated travel and communication included in each group.
Summary of Time Use
Changes Over Time by Gender
Women and Men - Life Situations
Men, % of day
W om en, % of day
100%
100%
90%
90%
80%
80%
70%
70%
60%
60%
Fr ee t im e
Com m it t ed t im e
Com m it t ed t im e
50%
Fr ee t im e
50%
Cont r act ed t im e
Cont r act ed t im e
Necessar y t im e
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Full Time and Part Time Employment
For additional information, please refer to
the ABS publications:
How Australians Use Their Time
(cat. no. 4153.0)
Time Use Survey, User Guide, Australia
(cat. no 4150.0)