Achieving a healthy, wealthy
and culturally strong
MG community
Yawoorroong Miriuwung Gajerrong Yirrgeb
Noong Dawang Aboriginal Corporation
(MG Corp) ABN 79 270 210 553
Office: (08) 9166 4800
Email: j.hughes@mgcorp.com.au
PO BOX 2110, Kununurra WA 6743
admin@mgcorp.com.au
www.mgcorp.com.au
31 December 2013
Mr Andrew Forrest
Chairman
Indigenous Jobs and Training Review
SUBMISSION FROM MIRIUWUNG GAJERRONG CORPORATION (EAST KIMBERLEY)
MG Corporation represents the Miriuwung and Gajerrong (MG) people, the acknowledged native title
holders of land in the East Kimberley and neighbouring areas, including Kununurra township. Pursuant
to the Ord Final Agreement 2005 with the State of Western Australia and others (OFA), large areas of
MG land are being made available for irrigated agriculture, with MG Corporation taking a key role in East
Kimberley’s economic development, which has involved significant Commonwealth, State and private
sector investment in the expanding agricultural industry.
The OFA provided native title payments which the MG people have used to design and to fund
coordinated and in many cases innovative responses to education, employment, health, housing and
other priority social issues over more than seven years, working with local community people,
government and NGO partners. As an example, MG Corporation recently completed a project with WA
LandCorp and Leighton Contractors to capture the full employment potential of the recently completed
Ord Stage II agricultural earthworks major project, which achieved an Aboriginal employment rate of 35%
at the peak of construction activity. Through numerous projects MG Corporation is building a reputation
for social welfare leadership as well as economic leadership.
Nevertheless, overall sustained progress for MG people remains slow and is undermined by poor human
and social capital (education, work-readiness, cultural break-down, substance abuse), counterproductive policy settings (welfare and housing), and misaligned and uncoordinated service delivery
(education, training and employment, youth services).
MG Corporation welcomes this important review as an opportunity to work with the Australian
Government towards a sustainable working future for MG people and the broader East Kimberley
community.
Opportunities for Real Change in the East Kimberley
The three pillars of change should be Education, Housing and Employment.
In support of these three pillars, the prevailing approach of government must be transformed to reflect
the following principles:

Incentives and opportunities for people to do right for themselves, and their families

Support that is focussed and coordinated to help them be successful in this, and

Sanctions so people know there are consequences for not taking responsibility.
Housing should be an incentive for participation, not a barrier
MG Corporation believes appropriate and affordable housing is a key barrier to our people achieving
good outcomes in education and employment. Approximately 80% of Aboriginal people in our region
depend on some form of government-provided housing, and there are fundamental problems with
overcrowding, income eligibility thresholds, and the affordability gap between public housing and the
private market.
MG Corporation achieved employment success – and insight into this area of housing – when arranging
accommodation for local Aboriginal workers at the Ord Stage II FIFO workers’ camp. Housing stock is
inadequate, a barrier to employment. The private market in Kununurra, like most northern centres, does
not provide realistic housing options for families embarking on a working future. We need housing
policies that help people work around the failed private housing market, which move beyond dependence
on traditional public housing.
Recommendation 1: Prioritise capital investment for new accommodation options that support and
encourage people to transition to and succeed in employment, such as single workers accommodation
and increased housing availability.
Recommendation 2: Change the eligibility and prioritisation rules for public and community housing to
remove disincentives for people to take up job opportunities. This includes allowing employed people to
remain in public housing as their income increases, with rent increasing up to the market level, and
consideration of “rent insurance” to reduce housing risk when a job is lost or seasonal.
Recommendation 3: Design and implement measures to encourage people to invest in home
ownership, including shared equity arrangements that reflect local market realities and not just “one size
fits all”.
Support services should be focused, effective, and aligned to help people succeed
Services which aim to help Aboriginal people succeed are often poorly coordinated, fragmented and
misaligned, and prone to duplication and gaps, bringing confusion and reducing effectiveness. This
brings a lack of accountability in two ways: on the part of service delivery agencies with impaired
transparency; and among uncomprehending welfare recipients for whom drifting opportunism can
become more effective than personal drive and dedication. Responsiveness to local needs is an ongoing
challenge. Where a reform principle is adopted, all local services must align to it, so that they do not
undermine each other: for example, a basketball program rewarding school attendance should not be
undermined by a youth-engagement basketball program focused on inclusion and diversion.
Some important services operate on an assumption of low participation: for example, low rates of school
attendance and long housing waiting lists are mirrored by service provision at a level which could not
cope with improved school or work participation. Key services and supports must be “reform-ready”.
Particularly important in this regard is the readiness of schools to absorb and deliver effective teaching
and transition support (similar to that recently announced by the Commonwealth) to children with a poor
past attendance record.
“Reform-ready” services will need to be resourced to meet higher demand as participation increases (ie.
not just to meet the current poor levels of participation), and provide innovative responses to support
people as they transition to sustainable participation. Services need to be rationalised to reduce
duplication. They should be coordinated to focus unambiguously on moving people forward in a clearly
agreed direction. Service delivery must link strongly to the intent and nature of the reforms proposed.
Recommendation 4: Ensure that the resourcing, capacity, and coordination of existing services and
supports are “reform-ready”, are consistent with the reform principles, and can properly support the intent
and nature of the desired changes.
(NB: this recommendation is closely linked to Recommendation 8 – Local Leadership, which should
provide the local knowledge and ownership to ensure the effectiveness of preparations for reforms).
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Sanctions, so people know there are consequences for not taking responsibility
In MG Corporation’s extensive experience, programmes of support to MG people and families are
undermined by lack of incentives and opportunities for improvement, and where there is no sanction or
consequence when people don’t make responsible choices.
Recommendation 5: Parents and Carers should be subject to the expectation (from our Community)
and the obligation (from Government) that kids must be at school and “fit-to-learn”. Parenting and Family
payments should be conditional on children attending school.
Recommendation 6: Adults who are capable should be expected to take up reasonable employment
opportunities. Newstart payments should be withheld or subjected to Compulsory Income Management
where relevant job opportunities exist and the recipient has accommodation compatible with holding a
job.
NB: Kinship obligations amongst family members (“demand-sharing”) may undermine the impact of
financial sanctions on the individual (by transferring the burden to the extended family). Sanctions must
be supported by effective and culturally competent communication and family case management. MG
Corporation has a special role to play in supporting MG families to adjust to the new arrangements.
Alcohol must be addressed or it will undermine any changes
Alcohol and drugs continue to cause major impacts on our families and community, including the
debilitating and irreversible effects of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). MG Corporation
believes the best way to tackle this is to get more people into work, and to tighten the administration of
welfare payments so people have less spare time and money to spend getting into trouble. These are
the focus of earlier recommendations.
Given the high levels of alcohol abuse, MG Corporation also supports practical measures to manage the
supply of alcohol, and continues to support the Kununurra and Wyndham Alcohol Accord, and previous
proposals for a Takeaway Alcohol Management System.
Recommendation 7: Prioritise the introduction of a Takeaway Alcohol Management System in
Kununurra and Wyndham to help limit the supply of alcohol to those without self-restraint, as previously
proposed by the Shire and the Alcohol Accord.
Local leadership is critical for effective change
MG Corporation considers that the necessary changes to welfare, housing and service delivery should
be jointly designed and implemented between the local community and governments. This will encourage
local ownership and commitment to changes which are seen to match local needs. A strong local focus
will help to cut through bureaucratic silos.
As traditional owners of the Kununurra area, Miriuwung and Gajerrong people have a special
responsibility to provide strong leadership in this regard.
Recommendation 8: Establish a tripartite Leadership Group, including the local community, WA and
Australian governments, jointly-empowered to design and to oversee the implementation of changes
which improve employment and other social outcomes for Aboriginal people in the East Kimberley.
Membership should include leaders drawn from senior traditional owners, the broader Kununurra
community, and the WA and Australian Governments. Members must bring a high level of commitment,
authority and influence, including direct access to political authority.
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