Make Indigenous Poverty History - Australian Goal 1: Eradicate Extreme Poverty and Hunger

Target 1: Remove, by 2015, the differences in income between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and non - Indigenous Australians

• Indicator 1: No Australian lives below the Australian poverty line
  
  
• Indicator 2: Indigenous Australians have the same household and individual income as non – Indigenous Australians
  
  
• Indicator 3 : Indigenous Australians have the same rate of home ownership as non – Indigenous Australians

Target 2: Eliminate by 2015, the number of people who suffer from hunger and malnourishment

• Indicator 4: The rate of underweight and malnourished children under five years of age is the same for both Indigenous and non – Indigenous Australians 
  
  
• Indicator 5: No Indigenous Australian lives below the minimum level of dietary energy
  

Australia

People with low incomes are often disadvantaged in all areas such as health, life expectancy, education, substance abuse, social participation, crime and violence.

The household income per capita in 1996 was $158 per person per week for households which included at least one adult Indigenous Australian, compared to $310 per person per week for all households (ABS 2002).

In 1996 the median gross weekly income of Indigenous Australians was $365 compared to $493 for non - Indigenous Australians. (ABS 2002)

INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIA

INCOME

• Indigenous Australians earn 62 % of the income of non – Indigenous people (HREOC).
• The disparity between Indigenous and Non – Indigenous has increased from 64 % in 1996 to 62 % in 2001 (HREOC).
• In 2001 the mean or average equivalised gross household income for Indigenous people was $ 364 per week and $ 585 for a non - Indigenous person (HREOC).
• Between 1996 and 2001 the average equivalised gross household income for Indigenous Persons rose by 11 % compared with 13 % for non indigenous persons (HREOC).
• The median weekly gross individual income for Indigenous peoples in 2001 was $226.  For non indigenous peoples in 2001 it was $380 (HREOC).
• Indigenous people tend to be employed through CDEP or in more menial jobs.
• Within occupational categories indigenous peoples earn less. For example Indigenous managers earnt 81 % of non indigenous managers and Indigenous labourers earnt $ 53 % of non indigenous labourers (HREOC).

Income levels tend to decline with increased geographical remoteness (HREOC).

The ABS statistics do not show the real living situation for many Indigenous peoples. For example Indigenous people are more likely to live in larger households with large numbers of dependents and smaller incomes. There are more likely to be several generations in one household. There are more likely to be single parent households. And Indigenous people may have resource commitments beyond their immediate family and who may not live with them (SCRGSP 2005)

HOME OWNERSHIP

Home ownership is an important economic indicator of wealth and saving and is likely to be positively related to employment and income indicators.

In 2002 27 % of Indigenous people lived in a house owned by someone in their household, compared to 74 % of non indigenous people. (SCRGSP 2005)

EMPLOYMENT

The ABS states that labour force consists of two categories of people:

• The employed (people who have worked for at least one hour in the reference week, including Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP))
• The unemployed – people who are without work, but are actively looking for work and available to start work within four weeks.

There is a strong link between unemployment and wellbeing.  High levels of unemployment tend to be associated with increased poverty, poor health, mortality, low life satisfaction, low self esteem, and high levels of depression, anxiety and suicide (SCRGSP 2005)

• In 2001 52 % of the Indigenous population aged 15 years or older were participating in the labour force (HREOC).  
• In the age group of 15 – 64 years the disparity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous labour force participation is greater. 54 % compared to 73 % (HREOC).
• The unemployment rate for Indigenous people in 2001 was 20 % in 1996 it was 23 % (HREOC)
• Between 1994 and 2002 the rate of Indigenous unemployment has fallen from 30 % to 20 % (SCRGSP 2005)
• The national unemployment rate in 2002 for Indigenous people was over three times higher than the unemployment rate for non – Indigenous people (18.1 per cent and 5.6 per cent respectively). (After taking into account the differing age structures of the Indigenous and non – Indigenous populations), (SCRGSP 2005).

 Labour force participation by remoteness 2001 (HREOC)

Unemployment rates by remoteness 2001 (HREOC)

Employment and CDEP participation

Indigenous people employed in 2001 had the following characteristics (HREOC):

• 93 % were employees, with four percent self employed and two percent employers
• 55 % worked in the private sector and 23 % in government
• 52 % were full time and 38 % were part time
• 60 % worked in low skill occupations, 21 % in medium skill occupations and 15 % in high skill occupations;

In 2001 18 % of all indigenous people who were classified as employed were engaged in community development Employment Projects (CDEP).  There are over 36,000 CDEP participants in June 2004 (SCRGSP 2005).

CDEP participants were:

• Twice as likely to work part time 74 % compared with 38 %
• More likely to report working in a low skilled occupation (79 % compared with 60 %)
• One third more likely to report having a non school qualification nine per cent compared with 29 %

In 1994 about half of all unemployed indigenous peoples had been unemployed for one year or longer, in 2002 this had reduced to one quarter.

RESOURCES

Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage: Key Indicators 2005 - Indigenous Report

Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision (SCRGSP)

Productivity Commission, Canberra.

http://www.pc.gov.au/gsp/reports/indigenous/keyindicators2005/index.html

A Statistical Overview of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in Australia. Human Rights and Equal Opportunity. http://www.humanrights.gov.au/social_justice/statistics/index.html

National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Survey 2002, Linacre, S, Australian Bureau of Statistics, June 2004. Catalogue Number 4714.0 http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/0/4F382B35C996604BCA256EBC000170BA?Open

The Health and Welfare of Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples, Trewin, D and Madden, R, Australian Bureau of Statistics and Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, August 2005. http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/ihw/hwaatsip05/hwaatsip05.pdf

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