Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain in Australia

Australia: Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain was 59.7 Percentage of employees in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
59.7 Percentage of employees
Change on year
down 1.5%
World rank
11th
of 29 countries
All-time high
89.7 Percentage of employees
in 1983
All-time low
59.3 Percentage of employees
in 2008
Years of data
21
1963–2023

Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain in Australia, 1963–2023

0204060801963199320231963: 87.8 Percentage of employees1968: 88.8 Percentage of employees1974: 87.8 Percentage of employees1980: 88 Percentage of employees1983: 89.7 Percentage of employees1985: 85 Percentage of employees1990: 80 Percentage of employees1996: 66 Percentage of employees1998: 60 Percentage of employees2000: 60 Percentage of employees2002: 62.2 Percentage of employees2004: 64.4 Percentage of employees2006: 63.3 Percentage of employees2008: 59.3 Percentage of employees2010: 61.1 Percentage of employees2012: 60 Percentage of employees2014: 62 Percentage of employees2016: 61.3 Percentage of employees2018: 61.2 Percentage of employees2021: 60.6 Percentage of employees2023: 59.7 Percentage of employees

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of employees.

Analysis

Australia recorded 59.7 Percentage of employees for collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain in 2023.

The figure is down 1.5% on the previous year and down 0.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain in Australia peaked at 89.7 Percentage of employees in 1983 and was at its lowest, 59.3 Percentage of employees, in 2008.

Australia ranks 11th of 29 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 88.3 Percentage of employees 87.8 Percentage of employees 88.8 Percentage of employees 2
1970s 87.8 Percentage of employees 87.8 Percentage of employees 87.8 Percentage of employees 1
1980s 87.57 Percentage of employees 85 Percentage of employees 89.7 Percentage of employees 3
1990s 68.67 Percentage of employees 60 Percentage of employees 80 Percentage of employees 3
2000s 61.84 Percentage of employees 59.3 Percentage of employees 64.4 Percentage of employees 5
2010s 61.12 Percentage of employees 60 Percentage of employees 62 Percentage of employees 5
2020s 60.15 Percentage of employees 59.7 Percentage of employees 60.6 Percentage of employees 2

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 8 Portugal 83.3 Percentage of employees compare
  2. 9 Denmark 81.6 Percentage of employees compare
  3. 10 Norway 72 Percentage of employees compare
  4. 12 Luxembourg 57.3 Percentage of employees compare
  5. 13 Switzerland 51.5 Percentage of employees compare
  6. 14 Germany 49 Percentage of employees compare

See the full ranking of 37 places →

More reference data data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain in Australia?
Collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain in Australia was 59.7 Percentage of employees in 2023, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain recorded in Australia?
The highest recorded value was 89.7 Percentage of employees in 1983.
What is the lowest collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 59.3 Percentage of employees in 2008.
How does Australia rank for collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain?
Australia ranks 11th out of 29 countries with data for 2023.
Is collective bargaining coverage — employees with the right to bargain rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Australia data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/collective-bargaining-coverage-employees-with-the-right-to-bargain/australia/

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About this data

Indicator
Collective bargaining coverage — Employees with the right to bargain
Unit
Percentage of employees
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
37 places, 1,069 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed

The database on Institutional Characteristics of Trade Unions, Wage Setting, State Intervention and Social Pacts (ICTWSS) was developed by Prof. Jelle Visser at the University of Amsterdam. It was first released in May 2007. In its initial form, the ICTWSS database combined data from various sources and projects with a main focus on trade union in EU and OECD countries, collective bargaining and employment relations in Europe, and social pacts. In 2021, the ICTWSS database was rebranded as the OECD/AIAS ICTWSS database to reflect the joint effort by the OECD and AIAS-HSI to ensure the continuation of the database following Prof. Visser’s retirement. The OECD/AIAS ICTWSS database is publicly available at: http://www.oecd.org/employment/ictwss-database.htm