The rise of the office economy and its impact on vocational education and training (VET) in Australia were examined by replicating the methodology used in Carnevale and Rose's U.S. study on the impact of the new office economy. Both studies took a functional approach to analyzing economic activities and the work force and focused primarily on workers in the middle of their careers. The following were among the Australian study's main conclusions: (1) office work dominates the Australian economy; (2) lower-skilled service jobs lead the Australian economy in terms of job growth, but are characterized by low earnings growth; (3) Australia's work force is polarizing as earnings for "elite" and "good" jobs continue to move further away from earnings for "less-skilled jobs"; (4) university and VET graduates alike are increasingly heading for the office sector; and (5) the office and hospital/classroom sectors represent good jobs in terms of higher average earnings and qualifications. (Fifty tables/figures are included. The following items are appended: a list of Carnevale and Rose categories; the U.S. decision rules adopted for creating five functions; descriptions of the relationships of industries and occupations to functions; tables summarizing "other" response levels; the eight-way occupational division; and additional data.) (MN)