Whitehouse, Allan --- "Aboriginal Employment and Industrial Relations in the '90s" [1994] AboriginalLawB 3; (1994) 3(66) Aboriginal Law Bulletin 6

• Aboriginal Employment And Industrial Relations In The ’90s

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Aboriginal Employment and Industrial Relations in the ’90s

by Allan Whitehouse

The purpose of this article is to focus upon one particular aspect of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment in Australia, that being the Community Development Employment Scheme (CDEP), and to discuss the emerging industrial relations issues that will confront Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples participating in this employment scheme in the 1990s.

The CDEP scheme is a program run by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC). It is primarily aimed at giving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are unemployed the opportunity to take charge of their own employment destiny through the creation of, and participation in, meaningful work programs within their own communities or organisations. In essence, the underlying philosophical basis of the CDEP scheme is to promote the principle and goal of self determination and the enhancement of the lives of Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander peoples.

The CDEP scheme is available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities or distinct groups within a community. Particular emphasis is placed on those communities where there are limited employment opportunities available. The scheme is structured so that individuals who are entitled to Jobsearch or Newstart forgo their individual entitlements, which are then pooled into a central fund managed by an incorporated body. Communities and organisations participating in the scheme also receive additional funds, in the form of a grant from ATSIC, to supplement their pooled wages.

The type of work individuals perform, the number of days they work, and the wages and conditions they are subject to, are at this stage by and large determined by the individual community or organisation of which the participant is a member. It is not uncommon for many CDEP participants to work an average of 2-3 days per week for a weekly wage which is at least equivalent to a Jobsearch or Newstart Allowance.

The first CDEP community in Australia was established in 1976 as an attempt to provide people living on remote Aboriginal communities the opportunity to overcome long term unemployment. Since its inception in 1976 the scheme has expanded considerably. As at April 1993 there were 200 Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander communities and groups located in remote, rural and urban locations involved in the CDEP scheme, with approximately 21000 people participating.[1]

The importance of the scheme for Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander peoples was highlighted in the final report of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, which was tabled in Federal Parliament on 9 May 1991.[2] The Royal Commission Report recognised that substantial benefits of the CDEP scheme were passed on to Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander people. Specifically, the Royal Commission Report pointed out the fact that the scheme contributes to improving the employment situation of many Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islanders and as such assists in improving the social problems associated with unemployment.

Additionally, in 1993, a report titled No Reverse Gear - A National Review of the Community Development Employment Projects Scheme was released.[3] This report highlighted the fact that the scheme has many positive impacts on communities, including improved health and housing services, increased local management of law and order matters, and the provision of sustainable forms of employment.

Thus, while the scheme is predominantly aimed at employment, it is also of great significance to communities in terms of its social and economic impact.

The employment activities that individuals participate in are wide and varied. The more common work activities include arts and craft manufacturing, land management, cattle operations, building and construction, leaning, essential services delivery and maintenance, child care, security, fencing, road and airstrip maintenance, shop assistants and book-keeping.

To date, communities and organisations involved in the CDEP scheme have by and large side-stepped, albeit unintentionally, labour market regulation and control. Except for a limited number of communities and organisations, CDEPs are not directly covered by an award or workplace agreement (examples of two awards in existence are the Pitjantjatjara Council and Associated Organisations Award and the Aboriginal Health Services Award 1992).

However, it can be demonstrated that an employer/employee relationship exists between the CDEP community organisation and the CDEP participant, and all legal ramifications follow. But, in reality, in the majority of instances there is no award coverage or workplace agreement and, with little or no union coverage, CDEP workers are not always receiving appropriate award conditions or wages.

This situation has not necessarily evolved from any direct attempt by CDEP communities or organisations to avoid industrial relations, but because the government, unions and, to a degree, ATSIC have not placed any major emphasis on industrial relations issues.

In order to address the multitude of industrial relations issues confronting CDEPs in the 1990s, the Federal government, ATSIC, ACTU, and other bodies such as the National Aboriginal Employer Association, have adopted a committed approach towards ensuring that the interests of Aboriginal CDEP participants are adequately catered for.

This commitment is evidenced by the fact that the ACTU's Aboriginal Affairs Strategy, which was developed in consultation with ATSIC, aims to ensure that over the next twelve months no Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander worker, enterprise or organisation is award free.

Furthermore, ATSIC has received supplementary funding from the Federal Government to cover the costs of introducing award rates of pay and conditions to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers. To facilitate the push towards award wages and conditions, ATSIC has developed the Movement to Award Wages Program and has budgeted $7.8 million in 1993/94, $11.8 million in 1994/95 and $12.3 million in 1995/96 to meet these costs.[4]

Whilst the transition towards unionisation and coverage by awards/enterprise agreements is necessary, it is not a simple and straightforward proposition. To ensure success, all parties involved must be prepared to adopt an approach that is sensitive to the needs and requirements of Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander peoples.

It must be remembered that for many years a significant number of Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander peoples have had little, if anything, to do with labour market regulation and unions. If they are to gain any benefit from being exposed to labour market regulations and unionisation, care must be taken to ensure that they do not merely become victims in the industrial relations arena to the same extent as they have in the social, political and economic spheres of life.

Clearly, the way is now open for Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander workers to adopt an approach that best suits their own needs in relation to the acquisition of award wages and conditions. Some CDEPs may choose to develop a new award for their own organisations, others may wish to develop an enterprise agreement, and still others may decide to become a respondent to an existing award.

Whatever approach is adopted, it must be done on the basis that it is for Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander peoples to decide their own destiny. The ACTU, unions and governments cannot use their involvement with Aboriginal and Tones Strait Islander workers as a means of enhancing their own profiles or as a tool for meeting their own political objectives.

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[1] Community Development Employment Projects Guide for Organisations, ALPS, Canberra, 1993, p. 12.

[2] Johnston, E., Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, ALPS, Canberra.

[3] McCullagh, G., No Reverse Gear - A National Review of the Community Development Employment Projects Scheme, ALPS, Canberra, 1993.

[4] Planter, D., From Dreamtime to Overtime, ALPS, Canberra, 1993, p.2.