NIGHT SHIFTS IN AUSTRALIA: How Many People Work in the Night-Time Economy? A Review of Current Evidence

Abstract

How many people work at night? This apparently simple question hides deep complexities in accounting for night shift workers in our cities and depicting their conditions across the country. This evidence paper draws attention to the importance of measuring and understanding nocturnal workforces in Australia. We do so in light of increasing attention to the night time economy (NTE) within Australian cities and major regional centres, and the growing success of NTE governance initiatives internationally in general. Despite the rise in interest in better managing Australian cities after dark, we find that there is limited availability of data depicting the temporal characteristics of the Austra..