Access to the Internet from home does not present divergences between employment types quite to the same extent. The levels of home access range from just over one in two (55 per cent) among students to a low of one in five (20 per cent) among retirees. Compared with other employment groups, the self-employed and full-time employed have slightly higher levels of home access to the Internet, with part-time, seasonal and term employees closer to the average. Respondents who are unemployed and homemakers have significantly lower levels of home access.

Respondents who do not have access to the Internet at home were asked to identify the main reason why they do not have home access. The results show a split between three main reasons: cost (42 per cent), a lack of interest (33 per cent), and a lack of need (25 per cent). However, these results are far from equivalent along demographic lines (as outlined in Chapter Three on the types of non-users). The major factors contributing to not having access to the Internet at home also vary widely depending on employment status.

A majority of respondents who could be described as more precariously employed (seasonal, term, casual, students) or unemployed cite cost as the main barrier to home Internet access (72 per cent among unemployed and approximately two out of three among seasonal, term, casual and students).