Remote Employment Services Review

Submission to the Australian Government Review of

Remote Employment Services

October 2011

Introduction

The Central Land Council is a statutory authority established under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 (‘ALRA’). The CLC is also a Native Title Representative Body established under the Native Title Act 1993 (‘NTA’). The CLC region covers the southern portion of the Northern Territory, an area of 775,963 km². The CLC is directed by its Council, which consists of 90 members who represent traditional landowners and communities throughout the CLC region. The CLC represents approximately 25,000 Indigenous people resident in the CLC region.

The CLC, among other things, is charged with the statutory responsibility to represent the interests of traditional Aboriginal owners and, as well, the wider Aboriginal population of Central Australia. The CLC also has a strong land management and community development program which aims, among other things, to develop capacity of Aboriginal people to engage in the wider economy.

Through the CLC Ranger Program and our Employment Unit, the CLC has developed considerable expertise and experience in addressing issues of work readiness, participation and retention in the remote Central Australian context. This submission draws on the experience and insights gained from the CLC’s activities in these areas.

The CLC is also contributing to the development of a preferred model for delivery of remote employment services through its alliance with other peak Aboriginal organisations in the Northern Territory under the banner of the Aboriginal Peak Organisations of the Northern Territory (APONT). It is intended that this submission be read in conjunction with the APONT proposals for shaping a new scheme that addresses the reality on the ground.

Lack of accountability in the current system

The current remote participation and employment servicing arrangements have brought very limited opportunities or economic benefits to remote Central Australian communities. The CLC is not aware of any examples that demonstrate that the system has delivered any successful outcomes in our region.

In fact, there appears to be a serious lack of accountability for the poor results of JSA providers in remote Central Australia. The tendency in these circumstances, where

1 there is failure in such programs, is to blame the Aboriginal participants. A common excuse is that “Aboriginal people just don’t want to work even though we’ve done everything to help them”. This is simply not true. There is a strong demand by Aboriginal people to work and much of the problem lies with the current system, particularly the role of externally based JSA providers.

Unfortunately the prevailing perception is that in the current context remote Aboriginal employment area is seen as a ‘cash cow’ for most JSA providers. Securing payments based on obtaining the signatures of Aboriginal clients in remote Central Australia appears to the singular objective of some JSAs. In one situation the signatures have been likened to ‘gold’ in terms of the value to the JSA providers. Anecdotally, for most clients, once signed-up, then this is the last time they will see the JSA officer.

The current approach to JSA delivery needs to be reconsidered and strategies need to be developed that lead to meaningful outcomes for remote Aboriginal people looking to enter the workforce. DEEWR should immediately cease funding to JSA providers who fail to deliver meaningful and lasting outcomes for remote communities.

It is recognised that absolute number of jobs available in the remote communities are limited. However, jobs do exist and local Aboriginal people need to be supported to fill these.

Lack of understanding of the remote context and need to build ongoing relationships

A major issue is that many of the JSA providers operate nationally and have contracts all over Australia. It may be that they are effective in the larger centres and cities but it is a completely different situation in remote Central Australian communities.

They are perceived by many of our constituents as lacking a genuine commitment to understanding the context and, in addition, have failed to establish relationships with the communities they are contracted to assist.

The CLC impression, based on interactions through our employment unit, is that the JSA providers have an ingrained perception that Aboriginal people do not want to work. This misconception appears to be a result of the fact that remote JSA providers have struggled to form strong relationships with communities and other key stake holders such as the Land Councils and local government Shires as well as other local employers. The impression is that most JSA providers don’t understand the people and communities they are supposed to be assisting. Many other organisations that deal with JSAs tell us that they are very difficult to work with.

The absence of such relationships at present is further evidenced by the fact that community people struggle to understand what a JSA provider’s role is. People are often asked to sign paper work they don’t understand and there is no follow up for a long time. This has resulted in a serious lack of trust of JSA providers.

2 Revitalise locally based organisations

It is exceedingly apparent to the CLC that locally based organisations deliver employment services far more effectively.

Through the CLC’s Ranger Programs it has become clear that trust and strong relationships are vital to achieving results in the CLC region. The importance of knowing a person’s name, their family and their story cannot be underestimated. Equally important is a willingness to listen and be responsive to people’s issues, training needs and aspirations.

It is important to recognise that commitment to a job is a two way thing, such that an employer commits to the offering relevant training and support and the employee commits to doing the job properly. These reciprocal obligations require a strong basis of trust, and in the remote context in which the CLC operates there is also required a degree of flexibility and contextual understanding.

On the one hand it is immensely important to be clear about employee obligations and what is expected from the outset; that it means an employee turning up everyday and a great deal of personal effort and commitment. If an employee understands this and is prepared to provide the requisite level of commitment, there is a concomitant requirement to strongly support them. This should include providing all the benefits that come with a real job but also ongoing training, support and ongoing mentoring.

Training: Capacity and Opportunity

In terms of participation there is, additionally, a need for two things to be present; capacity and opportunity. Capacity needs to be developed in tandem with providing the opportunity to work. Improved remote economic participation can only succeed where both are present. This is best achieved through an understanding of the local context.

JSA providers are funded through contracts with DEEWR to organise training for their clients, which is meant to get them ready for work. However, most training that is conducted in remote Central Australia for Aboriginal people is make-shift, often non-accredited, and unrelated to opportunities that do exist locally. For example, in some places JSA providers are doing building and construction training where there is no building happening in the community. It is unsurprising, therefore, that most training leads to no real job outcomes.

Due to years of educational underinvestment and historical disadvantage the real training needs are often in the pastoral care/life skills area. Many Aboriginal people from remote communities require assistance in these foundational areas in order to approach being able to be employed or work ready.

Training therefore is often a matter of starting from with relevant life and personal skill development and then, over time, assisting people to determine and fulfil their aspirations. The CLC has experience and understanding of the types of training and the level of support need through operating the Ranger Programs. The CLC Ranger programs largely take on people that have either never worked or had an incomplete

3 work history. Often basic literacy and numeracy skills are identified by new Rangers as their number one priority.

The CLC has found that it is also important to understand and recognise the extent of variation from one region to another where Ranger groups operate. There are strong historical differences between regions. For example in Docker River there has never been any sort of structured work, which appears to have lead to a situation where there is no strong culture of mainstream work. This contrasts, for example, Hermannsburg and Santa Teresa where there is a mission history and the legacy of work building up the pastoral industry.

Evaluating Ranger performance in Docker River and Hermannsburg requires different factors to be taken in to account. This is not about having lower expectations but rather understanding the context and how it comes to bear on the individual’s work readiness. Then there are also variables within Ranger groups. Individual work histories, or a lack thereof; levels of literacy and numeracy; impacts of substance abuse and physical health are examples. Without knowing people personally and understanding all of that background and having a relationship the development doesn’t come.

A good example where there is a tailored approach which combines capacity with opportunity is the Tjuwanpa Outstation Resource Agency. Tjuwanpa’s operations are based on an high degree of understanding of the local context and there is strong community support. In this example the Tjuwanpa training centre is located next to the Tjuwanpa Ranger Office; where there are real jobs.

There is a strong relationship between the CLC Ranger Coordinator and the training centre coordinator on the ground. They communicate with one another such that the training coordinator understands the direct training that people would need to move in to the Ranger program. Some people have moved across to work as Rangers. Through this level of collaboration the relationship promotes success.

Community support and alignment of shared values

The communities in which Ranger programs operate support the programs and view the positions as real and legitimate jobs. This is a crucial element in their success. Much of the appeal of work as a Ranger is that people can see it is success on their own terms. They see from other Ranger groups that Rangers aren’t just passive participants in a program.

The programs are also community driven. Crucially, there is input and support from Aboriginal traditional landowners in developing work plans and incorporating traditional knowledge. This is an example of where values are shared and aligned. In this example, the mainstream value of gainful waged employment aligns with a relationship to country, the imperative of traditional knowledge transfer and a custodial relationship with the land.

There is an intergenerational aspect to work that aligns shared values and enjoys strong community support. Young kids see their parents and members of their community turning up to work week in week out. This has a strong psychological effect and creates role models.

4 For example, recently in Lajamanu some of the children recognised the CLC logo on a staff member’s shirt. These kids immediately associated the logo with the ranger program and called out to the staff member that they wanted to be CLC Rangers one day.

Conclusion

Confining the role of a JSA merely to that of job finder in a mainstream way overlooks all the issues and barriers outlined above. This submission seeks to draw on the experience of CLC staff with respect to remote participation in order to outline the benefits of local understanding and an investment in relationships. Locally based organisations are best placed to posses such a level of understanding and to be capable of developing the required relationships. Any efforts to improve remote participation and employment servicing arrangements should acknowledge this fact.