CLOSING THE GAP

“Through one life-changing job placement at a time, every minute of every day,
we will continue to chip away at the disabling issue of intergenerational welfare
dependency. Change is occurring. Creating expectation, delivering quality education
and providing opportunities through employment will continue to be the change
agents that will empower our people and communities. The AES has achieved 20,000
job placements in 20 years. We will not walk away from the wicked challenges in
our communities. Together we will face them, and together we will succeed.”
Kristy Masella, CEO, Aboriginal Employment Strategy
Target: Halve the gap in employment
outcomes between Indigenous and
non-Indigenous Australians within
a decade (by 2018).
KEY POINTS
• This target is not on track. However, Indigenous
employment rates are considerably higher
now than they were in the early 1990s. Over
the years, softening of the labour market has
impacted adversely on employment prospects.
• In 2014-15, the Indigenous employment rate was
48.4 per cent, down from 53.8 per cent in 2008.
However, the non-CDEP Indigenous employment rate
was flat (48.4 per cent in 2014-15 compared to
48.2 per cent in 2008).
• There is a strong link between education and
employment – at high levels of education,
there is virtually no employment gap between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.
• Governments are setting targets for Indigenous
procurement and employment and corporate Australia
has been putting in a concerted effort to provide
employment opportunities for Indigenous Australians.
WHAT THE DATA TELLS US
Progress against this target is measured using data on
the proportion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
people of workforce age (15-64 years) who are employed
(the employment rate). New 2014-15 data from the ABS
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social
Survey (NATSISS) was released in April 2016. 29
This target is not on track. The Indigenous
employment rate fell from 53.8 per cent in 2008
to 48.4 per cent in 2014-15. The non-Indigenous
employment rate also declined from 75.0 per cent
in 2008 to 72.6 per cent in 2014-15. 30 The gap has
not changed significantly (21.2 percentage points
in 2008 and 24.2 percentage points in 2014-15).
This occurred in the context of a general softening in the
labour market over this period. The overall employment
rate for all Australians fell from 73.4 per cent
in June 2008 to 72.1 per cent in June 2015, with
sharper falls evident for men with relatively low
levels of education. The employment rate for men
with a Year 10 or below level of education fell from
67.4 per cent in 2008 to 60.6 per cent in 2015. 31 It
is therefore not surprising the employment rate for
Indigenous men fell sharply from 2008 to 2014-15
as nearly half of all Indigenous men of workforce
age have a Year 10 or below level of education. 32
In its independent report on progress against the
employment target, the Productivity Commission
acknowledged “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
29 Labour force data for Indigenous Australians will also
be available in 2017 from the 2016 Census.
30 Comparisons with non-Indigenous Australians
for this target are sourced from the ABS Survey
of Education and Work 2008 and 2014.
31 Unpublished data from the ABS Survey of Education and Work.
32 Unpublished data from the 2011 Census for Indigenous
men aged 20-64. There was no statistically significant
change in the Indigenous female employment rate from
2008 (45.6 per cent) to 2014-15 (43.3 per cent).
CLOSING THE GAP: PRIME MINISTER'S REPORT 2017
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