Identifying barriers to participation for Indigenous customers 001-09020110

Some additional challenges faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander customers may include:

• English as a second language
  English may be the second or third language for some job seekers and in remote communities, this would be the case for a large percentage of those. Many of these customers may require an interpreter
• Kinship
  Staff need to be aware of the kinship obligations that customers may have. If these obligations are not acknowledged in planning, it may affect customer participation. Kinship obligations may also include cultural, caring and financial responsibilities
• Cultural obligations
  Ceremonies or requirements such as initiation, mourning and women's or men's business, may affect a job seeker's availability for participation
• Caring responsibilities
  Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people often share child rearing practices between relatives of a child's parents, extended family, other community members and determination by kinship responsibilities. These cultural practices are part of life that provides a child with a sense of family and support beyond just their next of kin. There may also be cultural obligations where child caring responsibilities are expected of the job seeker.
• Child care
  Infrastructure in many regional and remote communities is either limited or not suitable for child care arrangements
• Financial management
  For many remote Indigenous customers, management of finances can be a barrier to participation due to the high cost of living, high transport costs and strong cultural pressures to share income with other family and community members.
  Rural and remote customers are often exploited by businesses by being able to book/pick up items and then are often unable to cover the costs of repayment
• Isolation from mainstream services
  Inability to access services is particularly relevant for people living in remote communities. Some Indigenous job seekers may also perceive that available services are not for their use or considered not culturally appropriate, and so may use them less often than non-Indigenous people
• Community attitudes
  Indigenous job seekers may sometimes face prejudice from prospective employers
• Homelessness
  Indigenous concepts of homelessness often differ to mainstream concepts and may include:
• public place dwellers who may or may not view the public place as their home
• people with transient lifestyles
• those who are separated from land or kinship networks
• overcrowding, where it causes significant stress to family or community, and
• Contact difficulties
  Many remote Indigenous customers do not have their own phone, and many are not comfortable talking on publicly available phones with limited privacy. Mail sent to remote community offices has long delivery times and is rarely picked up. Limited and unstable internet access also impacts the ability to contact customers or for them to contact the Agency via online channels
• Feelings of 'displacement'
  Feelings of cultural ambiguity (caught in the middle or between cultures) can affect how people view themselves. People may feel displacement from both their traditional and urban culture/communities, particularly young Indigenous people
• Remoteness
  One of the key barriers to participation is geographical remoteness itself. Remoteness of some Indigenous customers impacts adversely on access to and participation in fundamental services such as education, health services and access to income support services. They also experience a very limited local labour market

Training & Support contains the course codes of in depth training products for further learning about these factors.

As part of the new claim process, the Participation Interview will determine a customer's job readiness, any barriers to participation and capability to look for and accept work. This will result in an appropriate level of service being identified for the job seeker and may include an appointment with a Service Officer or specialist officer (for example, social worker).

Where a customer indicates a change in circumstances, or discloses an existing circumstance not previously discussed, it is always important that the Job Seeker Snapshot be reviewed and updated where appropriate. By discussing and updating the Job Seeker Snapshot with the customer, any barriers can be reviewed which may lead to a more appropriate pathway solution or further assessment. For more information about a Job Seeker Snapshot change of circumstance, see Conducting a Job Seeker Snapshot interview.

Job seekers should be encouraged to discuss with their provider any personal circumstances that are likely to have an ongoing impact on their capacity to comply with compulsory requirements. Where circumstances are identified by Services Australia that are likely to have an ongoing impact on their capacity to comply with compulsory requirements, these should be recorded on the Circumstances Impacting Compliance screen. For more information, see Circumstances impacting job seeker compliance.

An appropriate amount of time should be allocated for a new claim interview where barriers have been identified, to ensure thorough assessment of the customer's situation. Effective interviewing, preparation before interviews and the ability to rapidly build rapport with the customer will always be the key to identification of any challenges and issues faced by an individual job seeker.

Service Officers must conduct a thorough, detailed and accurate assessment of a job seeker's situation and their needs, including their individual and family circumstances, to ensure that they are offered the right help and support as early as possible.

All job seekers are able to request an exemption from their mutual obligation requirements if their circumstances mean they are unable to meet their requirements. Reasons can include, but are not limited to, a temporary incapacity caused by a medical condition, including a serious illness, principal carers with caring needs, expectant mothers, refugees or customers experiencing a major personal crisis. In addition, Indigenous job seekers have access to a special circumstances exemption in order to undertake Indigenous Cultural Business or Sorry Business activities.

When a job seeker lives in a Department of Employment and Workplace Relations designated remote area, they are referred to a Community Development Program (CDP) provider.