Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
for the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
July 2008
Table of Contents
Executive Summary.......................................3 Black Business Connections....................25 Opportunities for Employment.....................5 Training and Skills Development................26 2007 Industry Skills Requirement Survey Case Study Try-A-Trade Event. . .27 ....................................................................5 Government Indigenous Education Case Study Apprenticeship...........9 Targets.....................................................28 Inquiry into Skills Shortages in Rural and TESA Mining Traineeships Program......29 Regional NSW..........................................10 Pathfinder Group Transport & Logistics Government Indigenous Employment ..................................................................30 Strategies..................................................10 TAFE Training Program.................32 Case Study Hunter New England Case Study Care for Country Health Aboriginal Employment Project.............................................33 Strategy............................................12 Aboriginal Economic Development Case Study Reconciliation Action Program...................................................34 Plans................................................13 Case Study Job Compact, NSW Public Sector Indigenous Cadetships Tamworth........................................35 Program....................................................15 Skills and Training Needs of Aboriginal Careers Calendar......................................16 Health Workers........................................37 Disability Services & Supported Driver's Licences.....................................38 Employment.............................................16 Workplace Based Training, Mentoring Pathfinder Group Mechanical & and Personal Support..............................38 Engineering..............................................17 Case Study Retail Trainee...........39 Case Study Overcoming Employer Case Study Iron Man Welders Resistance................................................18 Project.............................................40 Enterprise Opportunities............................20 Strategies to Provide this Report to the Community, Land & Business Plans.......21 Indigenous Community...............................42 Case Study Tree Propagation Unit Recommendations.......................................43 .........................................................21 Appendices...................................................45 Regenesis Climate Recovery Project.......22 A Skills Held by Indigenous Persons Clean Business Australia.........................23 Available for Employment......................45 Gunnedah Flight Training College.........24 B Terms of Reference...........................47 Northern Inland Food & Wine Industry C Research Methodology.....................48 Development Project...............................24 D Researcher Disclosure......................49
Executive Summary
It is clear that there are numerous success stories of Aboriginal employment and enterprise in the Gunnedah area without being ignorant of the many challenges that exist to achieve levels of employment and economic independence comparable with that of the wider community. Within the broad pool of potential Aboriginal employees there is a strategic opportunity to especially focus on the needs of the substantial number of individuals who have the qualifications and/or skills required for many entry level jobs in the market however are currently wanting for genuine opportunities to work in ongoing (rather than time bound trainee or project based) positions and gain practical experience and skills. Successfully acting on this opportunity in part requires improved collaboration and coordination of key organisations, agencies and services across the Gunnedah Region. A range of Case Studies are including in this Report, both local and from elsewhere, as a way of providing working models with possible lessons of relevance to these key stakeholders in the Gunnedah Region. The imminent expansion of the coal industry in the Gunnedah area will create direct employment opportunities and the flow on effect of supply chain industry and the broader economy is expected to be substantial. Given the limitations of the coal rush, such as the risks posed by climate change and past trends of mining employees being sourced from outside the region, this research has also sought to identify Aboriginal employment and enterprise opportunities in the sustainability sector a Mining-Plus approach. With an ancient strength of Aboriginal culture and heritage in the area of environmental custodianship it is not surprising that there are both current and developing opportunities in the sustainability sector for the Aboriginal community such archaeological surveying, bushland and habitat regeneration, culture based tourism and more. With regards to training and skills this Research has identified the value in broadening perspectives of training to include the critical workplace based training, mentoring and personal support strategies which have proved effective for the purpose of Indigenous employment outcomes, such as cross cultural understanding and communication on the one hand, and workplace ethics and practices on the other.
Employee Needs
2007 Industry Skills Requirement Survey
Increasing, 31, 30% Declining, 11, 11%
The 2007 Industry Skills Requirement Survey involved 109 businesses from the wider Gunnedah region including Wee Waa, Gunnedah, Narrabri, Quirindi, Boggabri and surrounding districts broad enough to allow further in-depth analysis of the range of business development, skills and training needs issues that the survey covered. The business areas of activity in which this employment occurs are depicted in the below chart, noting that the Other category included: electrical contractors; service industry; veterinary and mechanical activities.
In light of the significant profile of the coal industry and rush in the region, it is noteworthy that 64% of business respondents stated they did not currently supply any mining operations within the New England or Northwest region. At the same time however the majority of respondents identified a likely impact on their businesses within 5 years.
1 Year 3 Years 5 Yrs 42% 34% 66% 16% 1% 1% 18% 24% 27%
YES NO UNSURE
Two further aspects to the Survey sought to identify more specifically the nature of jobs and skills requirements forecast by business. In addition to identifying industry areas where employment demands were, the skills and experience requirements needed from employees were identified:
And more specifically, employers identified the following areas as being where most difficulty was being experienced for staff recruitment (with the Other category including truck drivers, agronomists, panel beaters, excavation and surveying).
What is especially significant for the purpose of this current research regarding Aboriginal employment is that 62% (68) of respondents said they would consider employing less skilled workers if Government support was available, however a majority of these same respondents stated that they would not consider long term unemployed options. This willingness of businesses to employ people in traineeship-type situations, be they formal or informal on the job training, is significant because while there are clearly job opportunities with levels of skills requirements that could be met by Aboriginal people living in Gunnedah, there is also a significant amount of employment available that requires higher levels of qualifications, skills and experience and so further training would need to be undertaken by Aboriginal people.
10% of businesses expecting their staffing levels to increase, 50% expected them to stay stable, 18% expected a decrease and 21% were unsure
35% of businesses expected their turnover to increase, 18% expected stability, 35% expected a decrease and 24% were unsure
Almost one third of businesses expected to make some sort of operational change to their business in the coming year, half being diversification and expansion and the other half contraction.
Provide a range of recruitment, retention and career development opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that satisfy the needs of HNE Health and contribute to equitable service delivery
To provide a culturally sound and safe work environment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees
The Employment Strategy aligns with the NSW State Plan priorities for Indigenous people. Recommendation: It is recommended that a more extensive research project be undertaken to identify and summarise all government Indigenous employment strategies which are of relevance to the Gunnedah Region.
ANZ has a goal of 3% of Regional and Rural staff being from Indigenous backgrounds by December 2011
Commitment to expand the school-based traineeship program in partnership with the Aboriginal Employment Strategy (AES). Since the joint program began in May 2003 ANZ has recruited over 50 Year 11 and 12 students as trainees in regional ANZ branches.
The program provides trainees with practical banking and workplace experience, nurturing the capabilities and confidence that can allow them to broaden their future employment or academic opportunities. This can result in full time employment with ANZ or another organisation or tertiary study.
ANZ will recruit at least 100 young Indigenous trainees each year until 2009 and, together with the AES, extend the program to further regional and metropolitan areas across Australia.
BHP Billiton Reconciliation Action Plan The possible development of the Coroona mine would provide Aboriginal people and organisations in the Gunnedah and wider Region and opportunity to engage with BHP Billiton about their Indigenous Programs through their Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy and this Reconciliation Action Plan, namely:
Business programs to make use of opportunities for Aboriginal Organisations to supply goods and services to our operations
Medium to long term employment targets both for ourselves and our contractors, based on a number of criteria including how many Indigenous people versus others are living in the local and regional area, the level of unemployment, employment requirements by other employers in the region
Education and training programs at all levels, however major emphasis is on senior secondary initiatives and traineeships/cadetship programs
Australian Government: Centrelink; Indigenous Business Australia; Defence; Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry; Education, Science & Training; Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs; Health and Ageing; Transport and Regional Services
Koori Mail, National Indigenous Times and other newspapers (national and local) Aboriginal Education Centres within NSW and ACT universities www.jobs.nsw.gov.au
Profile local employers, job opportunities, skills required for these jobs and training options Be complimented by a matching website to advertise current vacancies and be updated on a regular basis
The creation of the Careers Calendar has been led by TESA in conjunction with the Gunnedah District Development Board and the NSW Department of Education and Training, supported by a working group with representatives from the community, training organisations and schools.
Automotive repair and service Agricultural machinery repair and service Heavy equipment repair and service Manufacturing metal fabrication
Further, the specific skills required by these enterprises were seen to be mostly encompassed by the following trades:
Light vehicle automotive mechanics Heavy vehicle automotive mechanics Plant mechanics Welders Machinists Sheet metal workers
ensuring that only job ready job seekers with suitable skills were referred to the employer conducting employer expectation training maintaining a good relationship with the employer and ensuring that they are culturally aware
maintaining an ongoing relationship with the job seekers providing continual on going support and mentoring to the employer and job seekers maintaining trust by not promising anything to the job seekers which cannot be delivered
Enterprise Opportunities
As is the case with Aboriginal employment there are also successful Aboriginal enterprises in the Gunnedah area which provide demonstrated examples and models for developing and new enterprise as well as potential platforms for business expansion. The growing coal rush and growing need to address environmental issues such as Climate Change both provide enterprise opportunities for Indigenous business. As mentioned earlier in this Report, in the event that BHP's Caroona Mine is approved some 800-1,000 direct jobs and 2-3,000 supply chain and other jobs will be created. While research indicates that past mining booms have benefited communities 'east of the mine' there is nonetheless a considerable opportunity in the Gunnedah area for supply chain enterprise arising from Caroona, particularly given BHP's Reconciliation Action Plan (see Case Study later in this Report) policy on supporting the development of local Aboriginal businesses as suppliers for their mining operations, such as:
Direct services to mining, such as labour hire services or meeting supply chain requirements such as archaeological surveys, habitat regeneration and rehabilitation services
Indirect opportunities such as labour-hire services created by the likely continuation of mining operations drawing employees from other areas, particularly agriculture, retail, trades and transport
Broader opportunities created by increased economic activity in the area such as hospitality, entertainment and tourism
Agriculture in the region has been depressed from weak rainfall and water access more generally. Should this turn around a likely boom could quickly emerge, particularly given global shortages of food crops and high global prices for wheat.
For Blacktown, their Climate Protection Program and role as Australias first Solar City For Liverpool Plains Shire Council this includes strategies that facilitate growth and guide Council toward environmental sustainability
These strategies will collectively enable the two Councils to work towards carbon neutrality and systemic change in their core business operations. Such operational changes will assist both Councils to influence their commercial sectors and communities by leading through example. The Climate Recovery Project has received $2 million dollars of grant funding for the three-year project and the total value of the project is approximately $4.5 million dollars. The project will use revegetation processes with the objective of maximising environmental, economic and social outcomes, particularly by planting trees for carbon sequestration, using State and Commonwealth emissions trading systems as the way of accounting and trading the carbon rights generated by the planting.
focus on community issues; approach the government ( local, state and federal) and key stakeholders on behalf of the local communities;
encourage collaboration between towns, groups and organisations within the region; and create a quarterly newsletter with current developments, ideas, events throughout the region.
An invitation to participate either directly ( becoming a committee member) or indirectly (being added to an email list to enable your ideas and thoughts to be heard) has been circulated through networks across the Region. The Northern Inland Regional Development Board can provide further information.
literacy and numeracy operation of various associated machinery, e g forklifts handling of livestock and saleyard operations occupational health and safety, site induction licences extending from light trucks through to heavy haulage requirements including B doubles
Private Sector Training: Truck and bus training and assessment is available through the private sector company, Compass Truck & Bus Driver Training, located in Tamworth. The applicant is first
Job Agencies
Unskilled Employees
Centrelink
Media Advertising
The skills and confidence to engage in NRM activities and represent Aboriginal community interests in and responsibilities for Country;
To develop the skills to negotiate appropriate management with respect to emerging NRM issues, such as mining in the Namoi;
To provide knowledge transfer as the basis for a career path for young people, who are not currently engaged in NRM as there is no perceived outcome for them;
To maximise opportunity for Aboriginal people to connect with country and play an active role in appropriate management given a paucity of land ownership and access in the Namoi; and
To improve relationships and partnerships between Aboriginal communities, managers of public lands government agencies and the private sector.
Pre-vocational work ethics, personal hygiene, personal presentation, resumes, selection criteria, interview skills, OHS and EEO
Skills based training Safe Food Handling (All Employers); Senior First Aid (All Employers); Certificate II in Health Services (HNEH, Nursing Homes); Certificate II in Meat Processing (Cargill)
Electives Literacy and Numeracy; License Training; other (based on needs assessment of job seekers)
Mentoring - Aboriginal community mentors will be trained to provide mentoring to job seekers through work experience, transition to work and a work adjustment period of three months. Mentoring relationships can be extended by mutual agreement between the mentor and mentee at monthly intervals after the initial period of three and a half months.
Aboriginal cultural education for themselves and frontline staff Managing Workplace Diversity training package Behavioural profiling of vacant positions being offered through the Job Compact to assist with better matching of candidates
Many workers are moving into the health sector for the first time and as such would benefit from more extensive induction processes, particularly to clarify their roles and the roles of other health workers
Specific training on relevant computer systems, recording tools and administrative requirements
The need to consider support for ongoing travel and accommodation which is often required for study and ongoing professional development programs that form part of their work responsibilities
The value in identifying strategies to address or overcome barriers such as the above which are disincentives to undertaking further training such as in social welfare and counselling and flow on possibilities for employment in other areas of health and welfare
Two-way between employer and employee Employee assistance plans addressing personal and vocational needs for the Aboriginal employee addressing on and off job issues
Cultural understanding and communication skills for the employer (management and peers)
The value and effectiveness of these strategies is highlighted in the below Case Study.
Maintaining an awareness and respect of cultural differences (for both case managers and employers)
Promotion of the benefits of Indigenous employment Maintaining a strong relationship with employers where successful outcomes have been achieved
Being prepared for and delivering highly intensive mentoring and post placement support Preparing job seekers with pre-employer and employer expectation training which is aligned to the employers induction training
Promoting success stories wherever possible Being creative in the assistance offered to employers and always tailoring those strategies to the needs of the individual job seekers
Ensuring job seekers are carefully matched with an employer who can meet their needs Thinking outside the square when considering the types of employment the job seeker may be suitable for
Recommendations
The key recommendation of this Report is to refine and undertake a series of strategies aimed to improve employment and enterprise outcomes for Indigenous people in the Gunnedah Region already holding the necessary entry level work skills. The suggested time frame for this work is eight to ten months. While recognising the need to integrate the feedback and suggestions that arise from circulation of this Research Report to the Indigenous community and other key stakeholders, the following strategies are proposed for initial consideration: 1. Progress discussions with the NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs with a view to negotiating a Indigenous Job Compact for the Gunnedah Region 2. Identify and implement strategies to expand and replicate the successful workplace training, mentoring and personal support model identified in this Report 3. Undertake further research to develop a consolidated summary for the Gunnedah Region of existing government (Australian, NSW and Local) strategies and targets for Aboriginal employment 4. Undertake further research to develop a consolidated summary for the Gunnedah Region of existing industry strategies and targets for Aboriginal employment 5. Design and implement a social marketing campaign, involving community and industry leaders and utilising relevant case studies, to communicate key messages, strategies and recommendations 6. Convene a Gunnedah Region Skills Committee to specifically guide and support the implementation of these strategies 7. Document the model of working to enable both evaluation and possible replication of these strategies for other Regions and communities
Appendices
A Skills Held by Indigenous Persons Available for Employment
During the course of undertaking this Research several Indigenous Organisations stressed a view that there was a sizeable number of Aboriginal people in the area who held a range of skills and qualifications and rather than requiring more training, different strategies were required to successfully place them in employment. Job Network agencies were asked to outline the skills and qualifications held by their clients to help better understand this area. Of the 32 Indigenous clients at one Job Network Agency the following skills were identified:
Storeperson, 1, 3%
Trolley Collection, 2, 7%
Volunteer, 1, 3% Administration, 1, 3%
Retail, 1, 3%
Rail Industry, 1, 3% TAFE students, 4, 15% Hospitality, 1, 3% Land Management & Conservation Traineeships, 3, 11%
Previous Experience Cleaning Clerical/Admin Computer/IT Drivers/Transport Industry Trades Food/hospitality Gardening/Farming Labouring Sales/Customer Service Welfare/Nursing/Aged care Plant operators No previous employment history 3 3 1 1 1 5 3 14 3 5 3 8
Training Courses & Tickets Held Conservation & Land Management Horticulture - TAFE Responsible Service of Alcohol Responsible Conduct of Gambling OH& S Green Card First Aid Certificate Cert III in Aged Care TAFE/ACE Food Handling Hygiene Course Plant Operating tickets Fork lift Tickets Welding/Engineering 2 2 3 3 13 10 2 3 3 4 3
Aboriginal Organisations: Gunida Gunya, Red Chief Land Council, Min Min Corporation, Narrabri Local Aboriginal Land Council, Wee Waa Local Aboriginal Land Council,
Local Shires/Government: Gunnedah, Liverpool Plains and Narrabri Job Network Providers: Best Employment, Jobs Australia, Country Employment Services and Job Link Plus
Private Industry: BHP Billiton, Whitehaven, Grass Roots Eco Store, Jeremy Holcombe (consultant)
Community Organisations: Gunn Workshop, Ascent Group Other Government: Aboriginal Affairs, TAFE, Namoi Catchment Management Authority, State & Regional Development
A range of strategic questions were used to guide interviews and this research more generally: What is already happening and working in the Gunnedah Region with regards to Aboriginal employment and industry? What is nearly working and under development and could benefit from support? What are the likely future jobs and industry developments in the Gunnedah area? What are the required skills for these jobs/industries compared with existing available Aboriginal skills? What training and skills development for Aboriginal people is required to access these jobs/industries?
What data and reports can you provide to support the above? How can this information be best provided to reach Aboriginal people?
i Industry Skills Requirement Survey, Gunnedah District Development Board, June 2007 ii Inquiry into Skills Shortages in Rural and Regional New South Wales, Parliament, Legislative Council Standing Committee on State Development, Report 31, May 2006, Sydney, pp 38-39. iii Inquiry into Skills Shortages in Rural and Regional New South Wales, Parliament, Legislative Council Standing Committee on State Development, Report 31, May 2006, Sydney, p 133.