The Government and Community Safety industry is vital to the everyday life of all Australian citizens. It covers a large and diverse variety of occupations, which focus on developing and providing services that promote the wellbeing of the nation’s population.

The industry operates across five key sectors:

• correctional services
• local government
• public safety
• public sector
• water sector

Correctional services manage the treatment of convicted offenders and are key service providers to the justice system in each state and territory. The sector employs
30 000 staff nationally.

Local government is one of the three tiers of government in Australia. It plays an important role in the development and maintenance of the local community infrastructure and services. The sector employs 145 000 staff nationally.

Public safety covers occupations and services responsible for the protection, security and safety of the general population from all manners of natural and man-made threats. Nationally, the sector employs 136 000 paid staff and 319 000 volunteers.

The public sector consists of the federal, state and territory governments. The sector delivers a diverse range of economic and administrative services on behalf of the various governments and for the good of the community. The public sector employs 1 400 000 staff nationally.

The water sector is responsible for providing drinking water and wastewater services (including sewerage treatment) to households and industry. This sector is critical to the environmental health of Australia. It employs 44 000 staff nationally.