Search Results

The proportion of people who are employed casually has been stable over the last 15 years at around 20 per cent of the working-age population. For most, casual employment is a relatively temporary state. There are some though for whom casual employment is a more enduring state. Does undertaking work-related training help those who are casually employed move into permanent or fixed-term work? And does such training have any impact on the level of satisfaction casually employed people have with their jobs, employment opportunities and life in general? Using data from the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia [HILDA] survey, this report investigates these issues. The authors find the impact of training per se on helping to move individuals from casual employment to more permanent work was minimal, as was the impact of training on an individual's satisfaction with their job or life.

Published abstract. Show less

The introduction of the Australian Paid Parental Leave scheme in 2011 provides a rare opportunity to estimate the labour supply and employment impacts of publicly-funded paid leave on mothers in the first year post-partum. The almost universal coverage of the scheme coupled with detailed survey data collected specifically for this purpose means that eligibility for paid leave under the scheme can be plausibly taken as exogenous following a standard propensity score matching exercise. In line with much of the existing literature, [the authors] find a positive impact on leave taking in the first half year and on the probability of eventually returning to work in the first year. The paper provides new evidence of a positive impact on continuing in the same job and under the same conditions. Further new evidence shows that disadvantaged mothers - low income, less educated, without access to employer-funded leave - respond most to the scheme.

Published abstract. Show less