2023/24 AVA Workforce Survey Report Released

The Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) has released its seventh Veterinary Workforce Survey report. This comprehensive report provides an in-depth look at the current landscape of the veterinary profession and offers valuable insights into workforce trends, including graduate debt, employment patterns, and the evolving demands of veterinary services across Australia. 

The report's results reinforce the AVA's advocacy priorities:

Need for a National Veterinary Workforce Strategy—The survey revealed that 36.8% of veterinary recruitment vacancies took 12 months or longer to fill. This issue is particularly pronounced in regional areas, where 44% of positions remained vacant for extended periods, highlighting the challenges in attracting and retaining veterinarians in these communities. 

Need for education debt relief and student placement support - the median student debt for recent veterinary graduates has surged to $84,640, a substantial increase from the $5,000 median debt reported by those graduating in the 1980s and 1990s. This growth has outpaced the Consumer Price Index (CPI), underscoring the financial pressures faced by new veterinarians.  

Need for childcare support for veterinarians in regional areas - 41% of respondents indicated that they undertook caring responsibilities, most of which are for young children. This highlights the importance of childcare support in assisting veterinarians in the workforce. 

Diversity, equity and inclusiveness 

The 2023 survey collected key diversity, equity and inclusiveness data for the first time. The theme of 2023 World Veterinary Day was promotion of diversity, equity and inclusiveness in the veterinary profession, and the AVA celebrated this with a panel discussion on the topic. It became clear that the profession is lacking data in this area. The AVA is grateful to our colleagues at Australian Rainbow Vets and Allies for their assistance in forming the questions and glossary to help us better understand the profession's demographics and diversity.  

Income and working hours 

The report supports evidence that average working hours are falling. The report found that median female working hours have been steady at 38 hours per week, while men's working hours have dropped to a median of 40 hours per week (down from 43 hours in the 2013 AVA Workforce Survey). The overall effect is that median working hours are falling as females continue to increase as a proportion of the workforce, the male workforce ages, and younger men also seek to work more reasonable hours.  

However, there are significant differences in working hours between types of clinical practice. The median working hours are higher for equine practice (49 hours per week) compared to production and mixed practice (40 hours) and small animal (38 hours). 

This difference is echoed with on-call hours, which were greater in equine (25.5 hr per week) and mixed practice (22 hr per week). Production focused respondents had a median of 9 hrs per week and small animal was 0hr. 

When looking at the effective hourly rate, the median hourly rate for women was $56 and $70.5 for men. The age differences in the profession largely explain this difference; however, there was a significant difference between males and females in the hourly rate for the age groups 45-54, 60-64, and 70+. 

Again, equine practitioners and mixed-practice veterinarians are at a disadvantage. The median hourly rates for small animal ($60) and production focus ($62) vets were significantly higher than equine ($50) and mixed practice ($51). 

Read the full report here.