Characteristics of public sector workers

Abstract

This article presents analysis of public sector employment, and makes comparisons with the private sector, using data from the Labour Force Survey. It looks at characteristics which differentiate people employed in these sectors, comparing proportions of public and private sector workers in different groups: by sex, age, ethnicity, disability, full and part-time working, usual hours worked, job tenure, union membership, occupation and level of qualifications.The article also explains some of the limitations of the data used and the methodology used to derive the estimates.