Dignity of work: Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy commits to post-voice race to create ‘jobs, jobs, jobs’

The failed work-for-the-dole scheme that supports 40,000 Indigenous Australians with no requirement to work will be replaced by a real jobs scheme that encourages and supports private enterprise, Malarndirri McCarthy says.

Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy. Picture: Melanie Faith Dove / Yothu Yindi Foundation

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The failed work-for-the-dole scheme that supports 40,000 Indigenous Australians with no requirement to work will be replaced by a real jobs scheme that encourages and supports private enterprise, Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy says.

So far only about 200 Aboriginal people have transitioned into real jobs as part of Labor’s trials in remote locations such as the Kimberley town of Kununurra. Another 3000 are expected to make the transition within three years as part of an employer grants program that began in December.

Senator McCarthy told The Australian she “absolutely” believed the entire cohort of 40,000 people could ultimately move into real employment.

This relies in large part on the work-for-the-dole scheme becoming a remote employment service that can help people into private and public sector jobs. Where such jobs do not exist, participants would train and qualify for work nominated by their community as necessary. This could include road maintenance or caring for the elderly.

The Indigenous Australians Minister told The Australian that “jobs, jobs, jobs” are at the heart of her post-voice referendum vision for Aboriginal policy. She sees remote Aboriginal communities thriving and realising untapped potential in a jobs scheme that is locally controlled. Consequences for those who opt out are expected to be revealed soon.

“I want to bring back the dignity of work,” she said.

“I know that if we can roll this out successfully in this term, and if we are given another one, we will see a marked improvement not only in the lives of First Nations people but also more generally in the lives of all Australians

“There is nothing wrong with ambition, is there? First Nations people are just as ably equipped to deal with that and handle that and aim for that just like anyone.”

Senator McCarthy’s vision is the boldest element of Labor’s plan to phase out the troubled work-for-the-dole scheme, called the Community Development Program. The CDP was pitched to Australians as a carrot-and-stick approach but faltered under the Coalition.

In 2021, working for CDP payments became optional for all 40,000 participants. This was after a Federal Court action that claimed the CDP was racist and a government review deemed it was more punitive than JobSeeker and too punitive to be effective. A national audit had earlier found the CDP was twice as expensive to deliver as the work-for-the-dole scheme it had replaced.

Senator McCarthy opened up about her own experiences of working for the dole in her 20s in her home community of Borroloola, when the scheme was locally managed and considered far more effective than the centralised scheme that later replaced it.

In Borroloola in the late 1990s, Senator McCarthy worked for the local Aboriginal corporation to establish a community radio station and to teach literacy and numeracy. She trained others to run the radio station before she left to work for the ABC in Darwin.

That old-style scheme is widely regarded as a success because it was locally managed. The new jobs scheme is intended to take the best elements of that old scheme.

Senator McCarthy said helping people to run their own businesses was an important part of her vision. She said there were numerous good examples of private enterprise in remote communities, including furniture, fashion and art businesses. This could be more common.

“It’s my push, I’m pushing it,” she said.

“It’s about local people doing local things but it’s also about people who want to go beyond their local situation and environment to do something far broader, whether it’s national or international.”

Anthony Albanese has struggled to articulate a strong Indigenous policy platform while dogged by the failure of the 2023 voice referendum but Senator McCarthy is making real jobs her signature policy. She is linking economic empowerment to the future of remote communities.

“There are social issues. But I am firmly of the view that if you provide any individual with an opportunity to have a good job, one that they are happy to get up in the morning and go to, and they receive solid pay with fair conditions and superannuation, long-service leave, sick pay, you will find a big difference in that place, whether it is a remote community or a town or any organisation,” she said.

One of the jobs trials has employed 17 Aboriginal people in Kununurra at Lily Lagoon, a tourist accommodation business owned by the charitable Wunan Foundation.

Wunan Foundation chair Ian Trust said the trial was going very well for those who wanted to work. He hoped others would join as they saw the benefits for those already participating.

“It’s very successful so far,” he said.

In remote South Australia, Richard Lennon-Lawrie, a Mirning man, is thriving in his role as a full-time ranger with Far West Coast Investments, learning and working on country.

“Now that we’re full-time, we can do more of the office-based jobs as well – like reporting, maintenance on cars, we can organise our own daytrips, doing our own surveys and patrols,” Mr Lennon-Lawrie said.

In remote Northern Territory, Warlpiri man Joseph Shannon from Tennant Creek has been passionate about music for as long as he can remember, and is now a casual team member at Winanjjikari Music Centre, through Barkly Regional Arts.

“I feel great, happy, something to do every day. I like coming to work, learning to set up the PA system. I’m always learning something new and also getting to play music,” Mr Shannon said.