The ABSF Explained: Diversity

Participants in the Warrmijala Murrgurlayi Agriculture Program

DIVERSITY is one of the 24 priority issues of the Australian Beef Sustainability Framework and one of eight encompassed by the theme of “People and the Community”.

The wellbeing of people is central to the sustainability of beef production and the ABSF promotes the well-documented benefits of gender, age, and cultural diversity to the industry.

The Data

Women represent a minority of beef industry workers making up about a third of the workforce at farms (32.1%), feedlots (33.7%), and processors (29.2%) according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2021 Census. Indigenous people made up 2.1% of the beef industry workforce in 2021 compared to 3.8% of the wider Australian population. In the Northern Territory, Indigenous employment accounted for 8.9% of the workforce on specialist beef farms.

The beef industry also skews older with about four in 10 workers aged 55 years or more and just a quarter aged under 35.

Snapshot of Activities

Pacific labour mobility is central to the Australian Government’s commitment to building a sustainable beef industry. It delivers jobs for Pacific and Timor-Leste workers, enabling them to develop skills. Pacific labour mobility also helps create strong links between people, businesses, and communities.

Pacific and Timor-Leste workers offer employers access to a diverse workforce who contribute to the cultural and economic vibrancy of regional and rural communities across Australia. All workers are protected by the same workplace rights and laws as Australian workers and additional measures are in place to support the welfare and wellbeing of workers while they live and work in Australia.