Some 90,000
Defence personnel, uniformed and non-uniformed alike, will stand
up and be counted in the Defence Census 2003.
Veterans Affairs Minister and Minister Assisting the Minister
for Defence Danna Vale announced March 18 as the date set for
the Defence Census, which would, for the first time, include all
permanent and Active Reserve members of the Australian Defence
Force and all Defence Australian Public Service personnel.
This will also include Defence personnel who are posted overseas.
“This is a major innovation and reflects the development
of our total Defence workforce as being a combination of permanent
ADF personnel, Active Reservists and Defence APS members,”
Mrs Vale said.
“Although credible and authoritative data on the ADF was
collected four years ago, our current demographic data casts no
light on the APS component of Defence workforce.
“The previous data needs to be updated and new data obtained
so we can better picture exactly what our current workforce looks
like and what their needs might be.”
She said the Census data was an essential tool in the development
of and research into personnel policy.
It could also be used to inform a raft of issues such as strategic
workforce planning, governance requirements or simply identify
future Defence infrastructure needs, Mrs Vale said.
“For example, results of previous census surveys have been
used to identify where increased child-care services or accommodation
may be required for Defence personnel,” she said.
“To ensure the data collected is statistically viable and
can be fully utilised, we need full participation by all members
of the Defence workforce and urge all ADF members and APS staff
to participate.”
Roy Morgan Research will develop and distribute the Census forms,
process the data and update the existing Census database.
The first Census data will be available from September 2003.
