Usual-resident population
People linked to the place they consider home. The ABS describes usual residence as the address where a person currently lives or intends to live for a period of time.
FIFO life · regional Australia
The people a mining town feels—but may not call residents.
A FIFO workforce can use local roads, airports, accommodation, shops and health services while being recorded at a usual address somewhere else. That difference is often called the ghost population.
Start with the definitions
Three populations can describe the same place.
Population present
People physically in the area at a point in time. It can move with rosters, projects, seasons, events and accommodation capacity.
Service population
The people using the area's services. It can include workers, visitors and residents of other places, depending on the service being planned.
What the Census records
FIFO workers are not simply “missing” from the Census.
The issue is where different Census products place them and which measure a planner uses.
Usual address
The 2026 form asks where a person usually lives. ABS guidance says this generally means the address where the person has lived, or intends to live, for six months or more in 2026.
Address on Census night
The Census also records where a person was staying on 11 August 2026. A worker in camp may therefore appear in place-of-enumeration data while remaining a usual resident elsewhere.
Different products, different views
From June 2027, the ABS plans to publish most topics by both place of usual residence and place of enumeration. Employment-related data is scheduled for October 2027.
For workers: Follow the ABS instructions and answer accurately for your circumstances. This guide explains the data issue; it is not advice to change your usual address.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder example
Official population, visible activity and a local estimate.
ABC reporting published 10 August 2026 captures why leaders in mining communities are asking for a better view of the people moving through their towns.
The figure reported by the ABC describes residents, not everyone using the city during a working week.
This is a local estimate and should not be treated as an ABS count or a fixed workforce number.
Passenger movements are not unique people, but they provide another signal of the activity passing through the city.
A place can have a stable official resident population and still experience service demand that changes sharply with the mining cycle.
Why the difference matters
Planning follows people, infrastructure and use—not one number alone.
Census data is foundational, but mining regions also need current evidence from accommodation, airports, traffic, employers, utilities and service providers.
Health and emergency services
A person may live elsewhere but still need a GP, hospital, ambulance, police or emergency response while working in the region.
Housing and accommodation
Permanent residents, essential workers, contractors, camps and short-term accommodation can place different demands on the same housing market.
Roads, airports and utilities
Passenger movements, heavy traffic, water, waste, telecommunications and power demand can reflect activity that is larger than the usual-resident count.
Local business and services
Retail, hospitality, transport and trades serve people who may spend substantial time in town without treating it as their main home.
Workforce planning
Recruitment, training and retention decisions need to consider the people physically present, the resident workforce and the labour flowing through projects.
Community investment
Councils and community organisations need evidence of service use and operating pressure when making the case for facilities and funding.
What this means for FIFO workers
You can shape a town without appearing in its resident headline.
When a mining town feels busier than its population figure suggests, the difference may be a mix of FIFO crews, contractors, visitors, project workers and residents who move between locations.
- Use local services respectfully; they may be supporting a larger practical population than the resident count suggests.
- Understand that accommodation and transport pressure can be workforce issues as well as community issues.
- Check whether a role is FIFO, residential, DIDO or town-based—each model affects the local economy differently.
- Do not use one statistic to claim a workforce is ignored or fully measured. Ask what population concept, date and geography the figure represents.
Sources and methodology
Use the right population measure for the question.
Source-checked 29 August 2026. The 10,000 FIFO figure is attributed to the mayor and is not presented as an official estimate.
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ABS — 2026 Census topics and release plan
The Census date, usual-address question, address-on-Census-night topic and staged release timetable.
ABS — 2026 Census product guide
How 2026 data will be published by place of usual residence and place of enumeration from June 2027.
ABS — population physically present in Australia
A clear explanation of usual-resident, physically present and service-population concepts.
ABC — FIFO ghost population concerns
Reporting from Kalgoorlie-Boulder on the gap local leaders see between official population figures and people using the city.