Aboriginal Economy

An economic pathway which starts with education, leading to jobs and being able to participate in business and commerce is my idea of a real future for Indigenous Australians and importantly the means to participate in the mainstream economy.—Ron Morony, General Manager Indigenous Business Australia [1]

54%: Percentage of Indigenous Australians aged 15-64 who were employed in 2008. Same figure in 2002: 48% [7].

17%: Unemployment rate of Aboriginal people in 2008, more than three times the rate for all Australians. Same figure in 2002: 23% [7].

Stolen Wages, stolen Aboriginal economy

Would you work for 3 cents per hour? Learn how Aboriginal peoples' wages were stolen, read about their fight to get them back and follow the stolen wages timeline.
Learn more about stolen wages

Stolen Wages timeline

2001: Stolen wagestimelineStolen wages timeline

Aboriginal people did not receive equal wages as late as 1986. Explore the events that led to a government apology, a wages reparation scheme and a senate committee.
Explore the Stolen Wages timeline

Number crunch

23.5% Aboriginal unemployment rate in Queensland in 2007-8, compared to 4.5% for other Queenslanders [3].

Repaying Stolen Wages

Australian governments are reluctant to take on responsibility for the stolen wages, fearing millions of dollars of reparations.
Read if governments are repaying stolen wages

Successful Aboriginal economic projects

Positive stories about Aboriginal economic success rarely make it into mainstream media. Here are some of them.

Store remake saves 600km round-trip

People from the Jilkminggan community in the Northern Territory who wanted to buy good food for their families had to travel 300km to Katherine and back because their store's stock was mostly unusable and very expensive [2].

The local Dungalan Aboriginal Association decided to improve the situation. Together with Outback Stores and the Federal Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) the community store was overhauled and re-opened, meeting all safety and health requirements.

The new store now has a good chance of making a strong return for the community and delivering better health outcomes for the people.

Jilkminggan is just one of those success stories where you see absolute co-operation with the community, the government and Outback Stores.—John Kop, CEO Outback Stores [2]

Rare Aboriginal business advertisement

Aboriginal business ad. This ad appeared in an Indigenous newspaper. It is proof of the success Aboriginal people can have in business.

Advertisements for Aboriginal businesses which fly the Aboriginal flag are still a rarity. More and more Aboriginal people are able to get a better education, despite a huge lack of government support in that area.

Adverts like this debunk the myth of the 'lazy Aboriginal' and are testimony to a new class of business people of Indigenous descent.

Australia's first national Indigenous employment website

On August 31, 2009, the Australian Indigenous Chamber of Commerce launched Australia's first national Indigenous employment website.

The chamber's chairman, Warren Mundine, said that the site provided a platform for government, businesses and Indigenous job seekers to work together to minimise Aboriginal unemployment.

"Indigenous people are not as competitive as non-Indigenous people. In interviews they're not promoting themselves. They're not selling themselves. It's not to say they can't do these jobs as well as anyone else—it's just the salesmenship." [6]

In South Australia, for example, the 2006 Population Census recorded an unemployment rate of 20.3% for Aboriginal people, compared to 7.5% for the state's non-Aboriginal population [4].

There are dozens of employers, some of the biggest in the country knocking on my door saying they want to hire Indigenous people.—Senator Mark Arbib, federal Minister for Employment Participation [5]

The website is available at www.indigenousjobsaustralia.com.au.

[1] 'Looking to leadership in trying times', Koori Mail 440 .48 [2] 'Better times in store', Koori Mail 441 p.19 [3] 'Report shows gap still wide', Koori Mail 442 p.54 [4] http://www.workforceinfoservice.sa.gov.au/workforceinfo/participation/profiles/aboriginalprofile/unemploy, visited 5/9/2009 [5] 'Open for business: indigenous jobs site', BrisbaneTimes.com.au, 1/9/2009 [6] 'Hopes for 100,000 jobs on new Indigenous site', SMH 29/8/2009 [7] 'Gains, but the gap is still wide, study finds', Koori Mail 463 p.9