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Country women self-employed
18 Aug 2004
Today's farmers' wives are much more likely to be using lap-tops and mobile phones, when not drenching the horses, rather than sporting aprons and baking scones, according to a snapshot of rural women drawn from the 2001 Census. Country women are more likely to be self-employed, with a lower employment rate than women in cities: about one in four women in rural areas were self-employed in 2001, compared with one in 10 in cities.
The rural women's unemployment rate was 5.8 per cent, compared with 6.7 per cent for the total population of 4 million women aged between 15 and 64. Many rural women are now heavily involved in financial management as well as the "grunt work" on farms, while others work independently.
The labour force participation rate was 43.3 per cent in rural areas among 55 to 64-year-old women in 2001, while in urban areas it was 39.4 per cent, indicating that country women work longer and retire later.
Australian Financial Review, 18/8/04.
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