Far from being a declining industry, Australian agriculture is employing a growing number of high-calibre professionals, and its workforce may be larger than previously thought.
A research team from the University of New England (UNE) Business School has identified the extent of this influential but until now hidden professional subset of farming. They believe an extra 6,000 people are today employed in the professional agricultural services sector (PASS), which boosts Australia’s 228,370-strong agricultural workforce by 2.6%.
Employment rates for the industry traditionally rely on very narrow Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) job classifications. These have suggested that, as a proportion of Australia’s total workforce, the number of people employed in agriculture has dropped from 7% in 1990 to 2.6% in 2020-21.
However, defining agricultural employees as either managers, labourers, or technicians and trade workers neglects the many professionals that now share their expertise and knowledge along the value chain.
“As agriculture has become increasingly more complex, global and competitive, the profile of employment has shifted,” says Katherine Bassett, a Masters of Economic and Regional Development graduate of UNE, who led the study.
“The 6,000 professionals may not sound like a lot of extra people, but it’s an important finding that highlights the different skills and capabilities agricultural production now relies on. In highlighting the existence of this workforce, we also validate their contributions and the agricultural career paths available. The industry is more diverse than people outside agriculture may think.”
Producers struggling with rapid technological innovation, climate change and new consumer expectations have become more dependent on farm consultants and market analysts, legal and financial experts, scientists and even HR managers as they pursue economies of scale and efficiency improvements. The UNE team found that some 40% of the 13,390 people that comprise the professional agricultural services sector don’t work exclusively in agriculture yet are making important contributions to it.
Fellow researcher Dr Lucie Newsome says the findings challenge the statistic that employment in Australian agriculture is declining by about 1% each year, as well as other long-held perceptions.
Not all those engaged in agriculture work on-farm, on the end of a crowbar.
“Workforce data for farm employment compiled by the ABS only measures the people who nominate agriculture as their primary industry; it doesn’t show all those others who work in the value chain,” she said. “Our study suggests there are growing job opportunities in this professional services sector and refutes the suggestion that agriculture is a dying industry.
“Not all those engaged in agriculture work on-farm, on the end of a crowbar. Many are tertiary qualified, work in diverse occupations, possess transferable education and skillsets in management and commerce, and are younger than we thought. Understanding the full composition of the agricultural labour force is very important in terms of future education, innovation and extension, but also government policy.”
The researchers used a combination of industry and occupation classifications, rather than the ABS method of nominating employment in a single industry, to analyse workforce data and compose a more complete picture. Their PASS Trident is a tool that could be applied similarly to other industries.
Katherine said the study demonstrates that producers have outsourced to commercial advisers many of the extension and advisory services previously provided by government. This enables them to meet the demands arising from innovation and technology, regulation and compliance, and marketing and value-chain integration as farmers increasingly assume the role of business managers.
Identifying the size of this professional workforce has major implications for educators and communities dedicated to regional development.
“The number of actual farms may have declined, but we are continuing to see generations of people with a passion for agriculture,” Lucie says. “Many are now studying at the tertiary level and we’ve long wondered where they go. We now believe it is most likely into this professional sector.”
With women comprising 55% of agricultural science degree graduates yet only 31.5% of the professional agricultural services sector, the study also poses some intriguing questions.
“If women are underrepresented in the professional agricultural services sector, this could be a talent pool that’s being under-utilized,” Lucie says. “Even though they have largely been precluded from access to agricultural resources – only 10% inherit the family farm – there are numerous ways women might use their influence and skills elsewhere in the industry. Those contributing to farming are not necessarily a bloke in a tractor in a paddock.”
Katherine says she hopes the findings illustrate the varied and interesting jobs available in agriculture.
Making visible those careers shows the next generation the variety of roles available to them.
“Jobs in economics, communications, HR and financial planning clearly exist for people who want to use their professional skills to contribute to the success of Australian farming without necessarily having equity in a rural property or the desire to work on-farm,” she says. “Making visible those careers shows the next generation the variety of roles available to them.”
Key findings from the study:
- The median age of most workers in the professional agricultural services sector is 40–44 years, as opposed to the ABS on-farm estimate of 49 years.
- Compared to the broader agricultural industry, where just 3% of employees have undertaken postgraduate study, 16.5% of those in the professional agricultural services sector have tertiary qualifications.
- The largest proportion of people identified in the professional agricultural service sector – 26.6% – live in New South Wales, and most of those employed in the sector live in major cities or inner regional Australia. This contrasts with the ABS figure that 82% of those employed in agriculture live in regional areas.
- Among this professional subset, management and commerce qualifications are the most common. This indicates that education in accounting, business management (including farm management and agribusiness), sales and marketing, tourism, office studies, and banking and finance are increasingly useful to the agricultural sector.
