The role of Community Development Employment Projects in rural and remote communities

• The Community Development Employment Projects scheme continues to reduce rates of unemployment for Indigenous Australians in the bush. Nevertheless, the movement of participants into unsubsidised employment in areas with thin labour markets remains difficult.

• The Community Development Employment Projects scheme cannot be expected to solve the problems of unemployment or under-employment for Indigenous Australians in the bush or elsewhere. Major changes in the way we think about the types of economic development possible in rural and remote areas are essential. However, this scheme can assist by providing funds to support employers to provide training and employment for participants, and paid part-time work for those between jobs.

• This study confirms that the flexibility of the Community Development Employment Projects scheme enables rural and remote communities to access substantial blocks of funds and resources to customise activities and enterprises and thus improve the physical and social environments of local communities. The scheme provides opportunities for individuals to experience regular work and undertake training. This engagement enables participants to act as positive role models for children and others where participation in employment and training is not always the norm.

• Indigenous leaders want their communities to develop the professional and trade skills required by all communities, and they agree that the level of initial and advanced education needs to be raised. Conclusions about the extent to which this scheme is able to meet these needs are not straightforward. The scheme cannot be blamed for the poor initial education of Indigenous Australians, nor can it be expected to provide the academic preparation in specific subjects required for entrance into professional courses. However, it can improve access to education and training for participants by coordinating training provision and providing encouragement and financial support for training delivery and participation. There is also room for the scheme to develop closer training linkages with external funding agencies and programs.

• The success of the Community Development Employment Projects scheme in encouraging participants and communities to engage in education and training will also be heavily dependent on the availability of qualified tradespersons and accredited trainers and assessors to deliver, supervise and assess training. It will also be dependent on the availability of training programs and accommodation for training supervisors or staff. The scheme will have to develop appropriate strategies to attract suitably qualified personnel to the bush to provide these services.

• Indigenous leaders in rural and remote communities want the scheme to continue. However, there is a need to ensure that all participants are engaged in relevant and productive activities. Programs should be made available to help scheme managers and community leaders to identify and increase the range of possible productive employment and community development activities, entrepreneurial ventures and relevant training. There is also room for enhancing the business development and governance skills of those who are responsible for the management of these schemes.

Aims

This study aims to describe the role of the Community Development Employment Projects scheme in rural and remote communities in Australia and to evaluate the effectiveness of the scheme. It describes the major needs of such communities (as identified by elected representatives), and how the schemes have attempted to meet these needs.

The Community Development Employment Projects scheme-an alternative to welfare payments

The Community Development Employment Projects scheme has evolved as a way of providing Indigenous Australians with 'alternatives to welfare benefits' and as a means for community development. It has subsequently focused on providing work for Indigenous people in areas where they had little prospect of employment, and this has included both rural and urban locations. In 2002, discussions commenced on the possibility of creating two main streams of activity under the scheme-one focused on sustainable community development, the other on training for employment. Policy confirming this direction was ratified in 2004. The establishment of these two streams of activity recognises that the creation of sustainable employment opportunities is difficult.

Community needs

In identifying what they saw as the needs for their communities, regional councillors generally agreed on the industry and professional skills required by any community-mainstream or Indigenous. These included skills and knowledge to allow individuals to participate in political, professional (including health, education, law), policing, community services, business, administration and trade occupations. Indigenous people required political and governance skills for participation in the boards of Indigenous organisations. They also needed to develop the negotiation and decision-making skills to allow them to participate in mainstream local, state and Indigenous politics, and management skills to manage Indigenous agencies and commercial ventures. They required marketing skills to enable them to promote their unique culture and heritage. Above all, they wanted Indigenous young people to be able to compete in schools, society and in the job market without experiencing discrimination.

Community Development Employment Projects scheme activities

The scheme supports many different activities: community-oriented activities, commercial ventures, and employment with community and external host employers. Scheme funds can be tailored to individuals and the needs of specific communities.

Participants in the Community Development Employment Projects scheme voluntarily forego their rights to income benefits upon joining the scheme. They may be involved in working with children and young people in childcare and after-school-care centres. They may work in health, and in drug and alcohol centres, and in safety houses or women's shelters. They may help to provide a better lifestyle for senior citizens, and work as school bus drivers, and carpenters and construction workers in Indigenous housing agencies. They may construct and repair bough shelters, and help community members to avoid trouble with the police in night patrol duties. Members of the scheme may also work in municipal activities, such as dust suppression and constructing and maintaining public roads, highways, public gardens, and air strips. They may also work in agencies performing specialist services for the Indigenous community as a whole (for example, the preservation of Indigenous languages and culture, and the provision of interpreter services).

Those who are hired by host employers work as receptionists, clerks, janitors, cleaners, shop assistants, trainee construction workers and carpenters, teacher aides, meatworks labourers, health workers, carers, recreation officers, and youth group leaders.

Participants also work in commercial ventures established by the scheme itself. Business ventures have included: cattle, sheep, and emu farms, studs, service stations, rubbish tip and recycling management services, vineyards, museums, arts and crafts enterprises, automotive and garment-making and embroidery workshops, retail dress and grocery shops, vegetable gardens, poultry pens, nurseries, sawmills, furniture-making, art and craft shops, meatworks and labour hire companies.

Participants

As at August 2003, there were 35 089 participants in Community Development Employment Projects schemes nationwide. Of these participants, 92.7% were Indigenous, with 7.3% from the non-Indigenous population who were accepted as participants. Over 90% were from the aboriginal ethnic group with small percentages from the Torres Strait Islander ethnic group, or combined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ethnic groups. The majority of all participants, almost two-thirds (60.7%) were male.

Almost two-thirds of Community Development Employment Projects scheme participants were in the 25-64 years age group, with just under a third in the 18-25 years age group, and just over 6% in the 15-17 year age group. There was a small number aged 65 years or older. However, in terms of participation rates, the scheme seems to be most important for the 18-25 years age group.

Training participation

Although the Community Development Employment Projects scheme's main mandate is to provide employment for participants, one of the performance targets for the scheme is to have 75% of work activities provide training for participants. The findings of this study indicate that almost all activities undertaken through the scheme provided on-the-job training and experience for participants. However, the uptake of off-the-job formal training by participants was less frequent. On-the-job experience helped participants to develop skills and knowledge required for the performance of their duties, including occupation-related skills, interpersonal skills, and acceptable work habits. A 'no work no pay' rule adopted by all schemes in the study generally provided reinforcement for the learning of acceptable work habits and contributed to increased self-discipline. Those involved in leadership positions (foremen, supervisors etc.) also developed or enhanced their management and leadership skills.

Apart from developing skills through on-the-job training and experience, participants also undertook formal training. In the main, managers reported that most of those involved in formal training were engaged in short courses (one- or two-day programs). These courses aimed to help participants to obtain skills and knowledge (and licences and certificates where required) for the operation of heavy machinery and equipment, in the application of workplace safety, and in computer technology. Participants were also involved in a variety of apprenticeships or traineeships (for example, construction, carpentry, horticulture, automotive mechanics, retail and panel-beating, jackeroo, child care, viticulture, business administration, automotive retail and hospitality). They also undertook programs to prepare them for other occupations, including sport and recreation coaching, interpreting, land management, and education and training. Participants were also involved in literacy and numeracy courses.

Participants tended to complete short courses, with the completion of longer courses being less frequent. Barriers to completing longer courses (for example, courses associated with traineeships or higher certificate levels) included poor literacy and numeracy skills, inadequate support from registered training organisations, and insensitive approaches to training. Obligations to attend tribal ceremonies and sorry camps (where relatives and friends of a deceased person gather to mourn in extended traditional funeral ceremonies) were other barriers.

Conclusion

The Community Development Employment Projects scheme helps Indigenous communities in rural and remote Australia to provide employment, skills development, and various essential and desirable municipal services. It provides the funding which assists communities to decide on what activities are required to improve their physical, psychological and social environments, and to protect traditional cultures. It enables the establishment of income-generating ventures.

Although the flexibility of the scheme means that communities have access to blocks of funding which enable them to mount projects which suit local conditions, the identification of suitable projects remains a challenge. There is a need to ensure that managers and those in charge of these projects have ample opportunity to enhance their own skills and knowledge about successful strategies which have been used elsewhere. It is also important to ensure that individuals have access to training that will provide them with relevant skills and knowledge to help them to improve their own economic situation or that of their communities.

The scheme plays an important role in reducing rates of unemployment in the bush. If it were to cease, unemployment rates for Indigenous Australians would stand at about 40%, with projections for substantial increases in the near future.

The movement of participants into unsubsidised employment is difficult in rural and remote areas. Although the scheme cannot be expected to solve the problems of unemployment in the bush or elsewhere, it can help to alleviate such problems. It can assist by offering employers financial support to provide external employment for participants. It can also provide a base for seasonal workers, and other individuals who are between jobs.

Indigenous leaders are keen to have their own community members involved in critical professions like teaching to encourage positive attachment to schools among Indigenous youth. They also believe that having their own community members participate in formal education and gaining professional qualifications and employment will provide positive role-modelling for younger generations and improve the public and self-perception of Indigenous people.

Conclusions about the extent to which the Community Development Employment Projects scheme can help communities to meet these espoused needs are not clear-cut. Firstly the scheme cannot be expected to solve the problems of poor initial education, and especially the lack of fundamental literacy and numeracy skills of Indigenous Australians, nor can it be blamed for poor school retention rates. Moreover, the scheme cannot be expected to provide participants with the academic preparation in specific subjects required for entrance into professional mainstream courses, including teaching, law, social work and health professions. This requires specific and urgent attention in the primary and secondary education sectors. However, the Community Development Employment Projects scheme can help in some ways to improve access to education and training for participants by coordinating training provision, and providing the encouragement and financial support which enable them to engage in and complete formal qualifications. The scheme also has the potential to assist in improving school retention rates by providing programs which focus on the importance of school completion and the acquisition of qualifications and skills.