A Greater Australia: Population, policies and governance - CEDA

Section 3.2Table 2Visa Type of Settler Arrivals, 2001-06 by Individual Income (Weekly) in 2006:Proportion (Percent) of All Migrants Aged Over 15 YearsFamily Humanitarian Skilled Other TotalNegative or nil income 22.8 8.4 19.3 11.9 19.9$1–$149 9.6 16.5 7.8 11 9.2$150–$249 10.7 33.2 5.4 16.4 9.8$250–$399 9.5 12.9 7.4 14.2 8.8$400–$599 14.8 15.4 11.9 26.5 13.5$600–$799 11.4 7 12.7 11.9 11.7$800–$999 7.5 2.8 9.7 8.2 8.3$1000–$1,299 6.3 2.1 10.3 0 7.9$1,300 or more 7.4 1.7 15.6 0 11Total 100 100 100 100 100Source: ABS/DIAC Data Linkage Project“The greatest disadvantaged group of immigrants is those who arrive under thehumanitarian program as refugees. They experience the highest rates of unemploymentand earn the lowest incomes. They are more likely to be in poverty than otherimmigrants.” 23EmploymentGaining access to the labour market is fundamental to social inclusion. The OECD 24found that Australia’s immigrants experience better labour market outcomes thanimmigrants to other countries, with the lowest unemployment rates and lowest relativeto the native born population. However, Table 3 drawn from the 2006 census showsthat recently arrived migrants and CALD groups have higher unemployment and lowerparticipation rates than the Australia-born. DIAC (2010, 101) note three trends withrespect to unemployment among immigrants:• Migrant unemployment can be very high initially – up to 25 per cent early in thesettlement process;• It takes four to five years before migrant unemployment becomes comparable withthat of the Australia-born; and• Recent migrants are more affected by economic downturns than other groups.Particular difficulty has been experienced by refugee-humanitarian settlers in enteringthe labour market. This has been strikingly evident in the Longitudinal Survey ofImmigration to Australia, and other surveys. 25 The DIAC Settlement Outcomes of NewArrivals Study of 2009 found, as Table 3 shows, that only 24.1 per cent of humanitarianarrivals interviewed were employed compared with 43.5 per cent of family migrants and77.2 per cent of skill migrants. Unemployment levels were also considerably higher.Refugee-humanitarian settlers by virtue of the sudden, unplanned and often traumaticcircumstances surrounding their migration face greater barriers than other migrants inA Greater Australia: Population, Policies and Governance140