澳大利亚统计局对2026年人口普查进行了20年来首次重大职业分类改革，新增约300项职业，同时淘汰约250项传统职业[1]。此次更新耗资2370万澳元，咨询期超过200天，涉及2000多个团体和800份提交[1]。新纳入的职业包括内容创作者、网络安全分析师和户外冒险领队等现代职业，而印刷记者、移民官员和养狗场工作人员等职业则被淘汰[1]。
设计专业首次作为独立职业类别被正式纳入人口普查，细分为平面设计、工业设计、室内设计、珠宝设计、时尚设计、多媒体设计、UI/UX设计、网页设计、纺织设计、动画师、视效艺术家和插画师[1]。这一变化反映了设计行业对澳大利亚经济的重要贡献，该行业年贡献约675亿澳元[1]。此次改革还首次移除了职业名称中的性别语言，如"man"和"woman"[1]。
Australia's statistical authority is reshaping occupational classifications for the 2026 census, introducing approximately 300 new job categories while removing about 250 traditional roles [1]. The transformation reflects the evolving economy, with newly recognized occupations including content creators, outdoor adventure guides, cybersecurity analysts, and designers—marking the first time design has been formally established as an independent profession category within census data [1].
The redesignation project, undertaken by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, represents the first major overhaul of occupational classifications in two decades and cost AUD 23.7 million to complete [1]. The review process exceeded 200 days and incorporated input from more than 2,000 organizations and 800 formal submissions [1]. Among the eliminated roles are print journalists, who have been merged into a broader journalist category, immigration officers, and dog breeding workers [1]. The design sector, newly recognized as a distinct category, encompasses 12 subcategories including graphic design, industrial design, interior design, jewelry design, fashion design, multimedia design, UI/UX design, web design, textile design, animation, visual effects, and illustration [1].
The update also introduced systemic changes to occupational terminology, removing gendered language such as "man" and "woman" from job titles for the first time [1]. This classification revision underscores the design industry's economic significance to Australia, which contributes approximately AUD 67.5 billion annually to the national economy [1].