Launch of the 2009 Census Report—Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APS Employees

Steve Sedgwick
Public Service Commissioner

14 July 2010
Woden Training Centre

Introduction

Good afternoon everyone. I am delighted to welcome you all to the Commission for this important event: the launch of the second Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APS employees’ census report.

Before I continue, I would like to acknowledge the Ngunnawal people as the traditional owners of the land on which we are gathered today, and to pay my respects to their elders, past and present.

I’m especially pleased to welcome our guest speaker, Ms Joy Savage, Assistant Secretary, Indigenous Policy and Citizenship Branch, Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet who will talk to you about her experience as an Indigenous employee in the APS.

We also have with us today Chris Sadler, Research Director of ORIMA, the agency that conducted the field work for the census.  Welcome, Chris—I’m told that you and your team did a great job and supported our Workforce Participation Team who put this report together, and we thank you and your colleagues for that.

Among our guests today, we have a number of agency heads including Ms Lynelle Briggs, my predecessor and currently CEO of Medicare. Welcome, and thank you all for sharing this event with us.

It is no accident that today’s launch follows NAIDOC Week. NAIDOC Week is about the celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, their culture, and their many achievements in every area of public and private life.

It gave me great pleasure last week to attend, briefly, the eighth annual APS NAIDOC Touch Football Carnival. It was great to see so many agencies represented and there was a great buzz about the day. However, it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge that this year’s event was more than usually significant for the Commission because we actually won a game, and were even at the top of the leader board for a bit. Alas, it didn’t last, but our team gave its all and acquitted themselves extremely well.

My congratulations go to everyone who participated, including the eventual winners - the team from the Department of Health and Ageing, who won a nail-biting final.

This year’s NAIDOC theme was “Unsung Heroes—Closing the Gap by Leading Their Way”. This recognises the part played by the quiet achievers in the Indigenous community.

These heroes lead by taking their own paths, and in doing so, help other Indigenous people set their own direction for the future. The theme asserts Indigenous ownership of 'closing the gap' and recognises that it is the everyday actions of everyday people which has the most impact on closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians.

These unsung heroes include many Indigenous APS employees, who make significant contributions to Australian life through their commitment to service delivery, program management, and policy development and are valued employees of any organisation. They contribute to the diversity of ideas and the creativity of perspectives we need to apply to the difficult problems of Indigenous disadvantage as well as many other broader policy challenges we face.

Before we talk about the census results, I’d like to summarise briefly the background to the census, as well as the context in which it was conducted. You may be aware that the Australian Public Service Commission launched the APS Employment and Capability Strategy for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Employees in 2005 in response to a critical business challenge facing the APS—a trend of declining recruitment levels and falling retention rates for Indigenous employment which was identified in the State of the Service Report 2003–04.

To gain a better understanding of how Indigenous employees were faring in the APS, the Commission conducted the first ever comprehensive survey in 2005.  The results provided valuable insights into the views of Indigenous employees on the nature of their employment in the APS and helped shape the continuing work under the Strategy. That work has contributed to the stabilisation of Indigenous representation in the APS, which has been at 2.1 per cent for the last two years.

As you know, ‘Closing the Gap’ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians is one of the Government’s key commitments. Under the Council of Australian Governments’ National Partnership Agreement on Indigenous Economic Participation, the Commonwealth public sector is set to increase the representation of Indigenous Australians to 2.7 per cent by 2015. Clearly we have a way to go to achieve that, and the onus is on all portfolios and their agencies, both APS and non-APS, to rise to this challenge so we can meet the COAG target.

Given this imperative, and the fact that representation of Indigenous Australians in the APS hasn’t increased, it was time to conduct a second census to help us better understand what is and isn’t working for our Indigenous colleagues.

ORIMA Research were engaged to assist with the design, delivery and statistical outputs of the survey, as well as drafting the census report in consultation with Commission staff.

All employees in the APS who had identified to their agency that they are Indigenous were invited to participate. A total of 1,649 valid responses were received, representing a response rate of 52%. I am very grateful to these individuals for sharing their experience with us. You’ll find more details about the survey methodology in the report.

Where possible, data from the 2005 Indigenous Census and the 2009 State of the Service Employee Survey was used to make comparisons. This wasn’t always feasible because the questions were not always identical; however, we were still able to make a considerable number of effective observations.

I’d like to stress most emphatically that the outcomes from the 2009 Census do not provide the answer to all the questions about how to recruit, develop and retain more Indigenous APS staff; in fact—and I’m sure this won’t surprise you at all—in some instances, it raises even more questions.  However this report provides some useful perspectives to help us reach our goal, and provides a platform for further research.

And now, to the key findings.

The overall results from this census show that there are areas where the APS is performing well. Positive results from the census include:

• 96% of Indigenous APS employees were willing to put in extra effort to get a job done
• 92% had a clear understanding of how their job contributed to the work of the team and 87% clearly understood what was expected of them in their job
• 82% were satisfied with their supervisor’s support for them to use flexible working practices—a very important result given that Indigenous employees are twice as likely as non-Indigenous staff members to have carer responsibilities
• 75% agreed that they had the same opportunities as non-Indigenous staff in their agency to access learning and development.

There are many positive results in the report, and we have much to be proud of. It is important to look at what we do well and to build on that.

However, the census results also show there are areas that will require considerable attention if we are to improve outcomes for our Indigenous employees. The report suggests four key areas for improvement:

• recruitment – particularly at the higher levels;
• strengthening the focus on retention;
• creating opportunities for more diverse job roles; and
• greater opportunities for career development and advancement.

Let’s look briefly at each of these issues.

1. Recruitment

The way that Indigenous employees enter the APS has remained fairly stable between 2005 and 2009. Indigenous employees were most likely to have entered the APS from the private sector, although study and the state/territory or local government public sectors were also key pathways.

The data shows that the majority of Indigenous employees (86%) enter the APS at the APS4 level or below. The APS Indigenous Pathways Programs and the Indigenous Australian Government Development Program conducted by DEEWR make a significant contribution to recruitment at this level. In fact, almost two fifths of Indigenous employees were recruited through Indigenous-specific processes.

The survey also tells us that those who entered the APS at higher classifications were less likely to have been recruited through Indigenous specific programs. This suggests that there is scope to consider and implement new ways of attracting Indigenous Australians to join the APS at higher classification levels.

The low representation of Indigenous staff at the SES levels remains a real concern - they make up a mere 0.6 per cent of all SES staff. A number of our current Indigenous SES are reaching retiring age – in fact, we have already “lost” two this year.

We know that we have an ageing APS workforce overall, which the Blueprint for reform of the APS has urged us to address actively. This is another example of that imperative and reinforces the importance of improving our practices regarding succession planning, including implementing strategies for recruiting, developing and mentoring talented Indigenous EL2s to increase their representation in the SES cohort.

Some of the suggestions from the census for expanding our efforts include advertising more widely in Indigenous-specific media to promote the APS as an employer of choice and encouraging greater use of the Special Measures provision to increase the number of Indigenous employees at all levels. The Commission has been working with a number of APS agencies to revitalise the Special Measures provision for Indigenous-only recruitment and a new policy circular is about to be published on our website.

The bottom line though, is that we need to be more proactive in promoting the APS as an employer of choice for Indigenous Australians.

However, the data suggests that we still have work to do once we have attracted Indigenous employees to join us.  At the moment, we lose too many, too soon – and we can secure “quick wins” in lifting Indigenous representation in our workforce if we get better at retaining them.

2. Retention

Indeed, according to the State of the Service Report 2008-09, the separation rate of Indigenous APS staff has been higher than their overall representation rate every year for the last ten years. So there are no surprises that the survey results tell us that retention will continue to be a significant challenge for the APS in the years ahead.

One in seven respondents signalled their intention to leave the APS in the next three years. We need to ask ourselves why these staff have shorter careers in the APS and what we can do about that.

It is particularly concerning that Indigenous employees with graduate qualifications were more likely to have indicated that they intend to leave or not be sure about their plans for the next three years than other Indigenous employees.  Indigenous employees are already less likely than employees APS-wide to hold graduate qualifications, so this is clearly an issue that will require further study - i.e. how to improve retention for this group of employees.

Some 41 per cent of respondents who flagged their intention to leave the APS gave the reason as a lack of job satisfaction. A further 35 percent identified that feeling undervalued was why they considered leaving. In modern parlance, these are considered ‘push factors’—negative aspects of the workplace that are within the agency’s control.

The survey results show that the most effective ways to improve employees’ satisfaction with their job and agency is through:

• providing effective supervisors
• developing an agency-specific Indigenous employment strategy to meet the needs of both staff and agency
• creating and maintaining supportive and culturally appropriate work environments
• reducing discrimination, harassment and bullying incidents; and
• conducting further research, perhaps through analysis of exit surveys.

These and other suggested strategies are explored more fully in the report.

3. Diverse job opportunities

The survey results show that Indigenous employees continue to work predominantly in service delivery roles. In fact, 41 per cent of Indigenous APS staff are working in service delivery areas, and an overwhelming 65 per cent are engaged in roles that involve interaction with Indigenous Australians.

Whilst this is not seen as a bad thing, respondents to the census questionnaire have indicated that they would like more opportunities to diversify their work experience. It makes sense to ensure that Indigenous APS employees are engaged in all areas of public service work so that the diversity of the Australian community is reflected.

The survey notes that Indigenous employees are concentrated in a small number of APS agencies. More than half of all ongoing Indigenous staff were employed in just three agencies: Centrelink (31.7%); Aboriginal Hostels Limited (9.7%); and the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (9.6%). Twenty eight agencies reported that none of their employees were Indigenous.

We need to make sure that our Indigenous employees don’t see their options as limited to just a few agencies and they receive a clear message from the leadership of the APS that Indigenous employees are just as welcome in a broad range of roles right across the APS. This issue is highlighted in a number of comments provided through the survey: “I was placed in the Indigenous space – I did not actively seek out Indigenous work” and “I am based in a region. My position gives me the ability to influence policy and program but it is difficult to find a clear pathway to do this within the department”.

As the Blueprint for reform of the APS makes clear, exposing talented people to broader environments and different job opportunities is a good way to deepen their experience, develop their talent and improve their promotion and retention prospects. Such approaches are part of the human capital strategies of the most effective organisations. Feedback from the Census suggests that many of our Indigenous employees would welcome such opportunities.

To encourage Indigenous employees to work in a wider range of job roles may require the provision of appropriate support mechanisms for both staff and managers.

Again, the evidence is clear that there will be significant gains in employee engagement and retention if we work with our Indigenous employees to map their career pathways and provide them with opportunities to acquire the relevant professional and personal skills that will enable them to develop the confidence to take on new roles.

4. Career Development and Progression

Moreover, many census respondents indicated that they are not always aware of opportunities for advancement. The results suggest that retention could be improved if strategies are employed which focus on increasing awareness among Indigenous employees about where the opportunities for higher duties and/or promotion exist. Successful strategies are likely to include the provision of development opportunities designed to increase employees’ self-confidence, qualifications and/or experience – all important elements in encouraging Indigenous employees to work in a wider range of job roles.

Indigenous respondents to the survey placed a ‘high’ priority on developing people-oriented skills.

The most commonly nominated priorities were to develop communication (69%), leadership (65%) and management (59%) skills. These three areas were also nominated as ‘high’ priorities in the 2005 Census.

The critical message from the 2009 Census is clear: the APS needs to do more if it wants to improve the representation of Indigenous employees.

Whilst it is essential to increase the recruitment of Indigenous Australians to the APS, the key to such improvement lies in retaining and developing career pathways for our Indigenous employees. It is clear that a “business as usual” approach is not likely to be good enough.

The Commission is partnering with the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations to help agencies enhance existing recruitment strategies, and develop alternative techniques to increase engagements and improve the retention of Indigenous staff.  I understand that some of our colleagues from DEEWR are here today—we look forward to continuing to work with you on this important and exciting project.

And last but by no means least, the Australian Government’s commitment to diversity in the APS is reflected in the statement in the recently released Ahead of the Game: Blueprint for the reform of Australian Government Administration.

It states and I quote:

“The APS should mirror the diversity of the broader population and reflect Australia’s diversity of cultural backgrounds, people with disability, women and the Indigenous population. Diversity should be reflected at all levels of the APS and not be confined to more junior positions.”

The Blueprint identifies the Commission as the lead agency in a number of the APS reforms, many of which relate directly or indirectly to the four areas of focus identified in this report.

The 2009 Census findings, together with the work underway through the Indigenous Employment Strategy, the commitment to the COAG target, and the release of the Blueprint, is best viewed as a catalyst for us to renew our efforts to improve the representation of Indigenous staff across the APS.

Before closing, it would be remiss of me not to acknowledge the support and assistance we receive from all of our partner agencies. To my colleagues who actively participate in the Commission’s employment programs, may I say thank you for recognising the enormous importance of this work. I also acknowledge the continued support and dedication of all of our Indigenous employees. I’m confident that together we will achieve our objectives and I look forward to working with you.  

Thank you all for coming.