Scrapping work-for-the-dole a disaster: NT ministerPosted Tue Jul 24, 2007 Northern Territory Public Employment Minister Paul Henderson says the decision to scrap the Community Development Employment Projects (CDEP) from remote communities is a recipe for disaster. Federal Indigenous Affairs Minister Mal Brough says it will be removed from remote communities in September, a move he says to get more Aboriginal people working in real jobs. But Mr Henderson says the axing of CDEP will result in some of Australia's poorest people earning $30 less a week. Breaking news - Former NSW Minister for Aboriginal Affairs committed for trial on child sex charges | "The reality for very many of these remote communities is there is no economy," he said. "Removing CDEP is not going to be a magical fix to transport these people into a full-time job where full-time jobs don't exist." Professor Jon Altman from the Centre for Aboriginal Economic and Policy Research says it will cost billions of dollars to develop an economic base to provide jobs for Aboriginal people. "If it's done automatically, it would be absolutely disastrous," he said. "Even if it was tapered in over a five or 10-year period, it would penalise some terrific CDEP organisations that are doing a marvellous job of doing [changing? - Ed] part-time work, which is the work-for-the-dole payment into full-time work." He says Mr Brough's plan will drive up unemployment in the short-term | 
Mal Brough talks to a Mutitjulu Aboriginal elder. He says the emergency response to sex abuse was the catalyst for the changes. [File photo] (Getty Images: Ian Waldie) |
Indigenous communities' employment scheme to be axed "Indigenous affairs minister Mal Brough has promoted the concept of removing CDEPs in a typically Orwellian manner, arguing that CDEPs just disguise the real levels of unemployment in remote Aboriginal communities. | He claims scrapping CDEPs will “mainstream” these communities by helping create “real jobs” on “real wages”. ABS figures for the NT for 2006 show that the NT unemployment rate for Indigenous people was estimated at 15.7 per cent, more than three times the Australian rate of 4.9 per cent. But this rate includes an estimated 8000 CDEP participants as employed. | “If the total number of Indigenous people employed in the NT (15,300) is reduced by 8000 and between 1655 and 2000 ‘real jobs’ are created … by replacing all non-Indigenous employment with Indigenous workers, then the unemployment rate will still increase to at least 50 per cent.” - Full article | Balgo Safe House Goes Unfunded
Media Release 26 July 2007From Kapululangu Women’s Centre, Balgo, near Halls Creek. WA 20th person charged in child sex crackdown
Thursday, 26 July 2007 By Nicolas Perpitch PERTH, July 26, 2007: A 20th person has been charged with child sex offences in Western Australia's far north (near Halls Creek, WA) as police continue investigations into child abuse in the state's Aboriginal communities. Full article |
The Kapululangu Aboriginal Women’s Association of Balgo community received news today that it has not been granted government funding for the fiscal year 2007-2008. This leaves the Balgo women’s organisation without funding to provide a safe environment and run its cultural programs for the children and women of their community. Full article |
|
"By my calculations, [it will] probably push [up] Indigenous unemployment in remote communities by 70 or 80 per cent," he said. "There just aren't enough jobs out there. The sorts of jobs non-Indigenous people are doing as accountants, tradespeople [and] arts advisers often require qualifications that many Indigenous people don't have." Meanwhile Labor MP Warren Snowdon says scrapping the Aboriginal work-for-the-dole scheme will increase confusion and uncertainty in remote communities. He says scrapping CDEP is more about quarantining income than community development. "The issue here is about throwing out the baby with the bath water," he said. "CDEP has been a very successful program in many communities and has been relied on in many communities. "People have been planning for the next 12 months on what programs they can develop through their CDEP schemes, they're all now out the window and now they face a great deal of uncertainty." Also of Interest Govt ditches Aboriginal work-for-dole scheme
23 Jul 2007 Scrapping CDEP puts services at risk: NT Govt
24 Jul 2007 Govt slashes Indigenous work-for-the-dole program
17 Feb 2007 Cuts to Indigenous employment program spark debate
17 Feb 2007 Indigenous community workers voice concerns over CDEP cuts
18 Feb 2007 Green Left Weekly - Indigenous communities' employment scheme to be axed
 Quote this article on your site | Views: 649 | Print | E-mail
Powered by AkoComment Tweaked Special Edition v.1.4.6
AkoComment © Copyright 2004 by Arthur Konze - www.mamboportal.com
All right reserved |
