Statistics

2.2% of Australia's population identifies themselves as Indigenous.

There were 50 major Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander languages counted in the 1996 census.

Between 1996 and 2000, the number of Indigenous Australians in Training and Vocational education increased by 60%.

Percentage of all students studying to Year 10 in 2001 - 94%
Percentage of Indigenous students studying to Year 10 - 86%

Percentage of all students studying to Year 12 - 73%
Percentage of Indigenous students studying to Year 12 - 36%

70% of non-Indigenous Australians own their own home compared to 30% of Indigenous Australians.

The unemployment rate for Indigenous Australians is 17.6%

The Indigenous population is growing at twice the rate of the total Australian population.

60% of Indigenous Australians are under 25 years of age.

21% of the total population is under 25 years of age.

Percentage of Indigenous Australians who live in remote areas - 20%
Percentage of non-Indigenous Australians who live in remote areas - 1%

It is estimated that 70% of jobs held by Indigenous Australians are reliant to some extent on public funding.

Percentage of jobs held by Indigenous Australians that are unskilled - 25%
Percentage of jobs that are unskilled - 9%

Australian Indigenous Community

National Indigenous Population of working age (15+): 254 400 ^{[ref 1]}

National Indigenous Labour Force (includes both employed and unemployed people) as at Feb 2000 ^{[ref 1]}: 134 600 (includes 30,600 Commonwealth Development Employment Program participants nationally).

Indigenous Labour Force by residence

Capital cities 45 700 (34%) (Includes all State and Territory capital city Statistical divisions) ^{[ref 2]}

Sparsely settled areas 13 500 (10%)

Balance of state 75 400 (56%) (Balance of state includes all parts of Australia other than those covered by Capital city areas and Sparsely Settled areas) ^{[ref 2]}

National Indigenous population not in the labour force: 119 800 ^{[ref 1]}

National Indigenous people unemployed 23 700 (includes CDEP participation) 17.6% ^{[ref 1]}

National Indigenous unemployment rate (including CDEP participants): 44.1% ^{[ref 3]}

National non-Indigenous unemployment rate 7.3% ^{[ref 1]}

National Indigenous labour force participation rate 52.9% ^{[ref 1]}

Based on the 1996 census data, 5.9% of Australia's Indigenous population lives in Victoria. 40% are under 15 years and 2.6% are over 65 years of age, indicating that in Victoria 57.4% of the population are of working age. ^{(ref 4)}

Victorian Indigenous Community

Given a National Indigenous labour force of 134,600 of which 5.9% are Victorian residents, the Victorian profile is as follows:

7,941 Indigenous people in the labour force (includes employed and unemployed people)

3,502 Indigenous people unemployed based on the national unemployment rate of 44.1% (including CDEP)

1,397 Indigenous people unemployed, discounting CDEP participants

4,439 people employed in Victoria

7,068 Indigenous people not in the labour force (includes discouraged workers)

* It is generally accepted that there are between 22 000 to 25 000 Indigenous people living in Victoria

Victorian Education 1998: ^{(ref 5)}

3,966 Indigenous people enrolled in a TAFE course.

258 Indigenous people completed a TAFE course.

1,837 of the enrolled Indigenous people lived in the Melbourne Metro region

93 Indigenous people living in the Melbourne Metro region completed a TAFE course

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Definitions

Employed persons

Employed persons are those over the age of 15 years who, during the survey reference week, worked for one hour or more for pay, profit, or payment in kind in a job or business, or on a farm; or worked for one hour or more without pay in a family business or on a farm; or who had a job but were not at work for a number of specific reasons; or were employers, self-employed persons or unpaid family helpers who had a job, business or farm, but were not at work. ^{(ref 6)}

Unemployed persons

Unemployed persons are defined as those who were not employed during the reference period and who had actively looked for full time or part time work at any time during the four weeks up to the end of the reference week, and were available to start work in the reference week, or were waiting to start a new job or waiting to be called back to their job. ^{(ref 7)}

Persons not in the labour force

Persons not in the labour force are those in the population that satisfy neither the employment nor unemployment criteria. They include persons who don't want to work for a variety of reasons such as homemakers, retirees from the labour force, and those who can't work as a result of a disability. It also includes those who are in prison, hospital or other institutions. ^{(ref 7)}

References

1. ABS Labour Force Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australian ABS No 6287.0 Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000 page 10
2. ABS Labour Force Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australian ABS No 6287.0 Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000 page 41
3. The Job Still Ahead Economic Costs of continuing Indigenous employment disparity ATSIC A report for ATSIC by John Taylor and Boyd Hunter, Office of Public Affairs 1998 page 18
4. ABS Population Special Article - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians; A statistical profile from the 1996 Census (Year Book Australia, 1999) page 3
5. Wurreker The message carriers, The Koorie Community and TAFE in Victoria in Equal Partnership Dept of Education, Employment and Training, Victoria for the Office of Post Compulsory Education Employment and Training page 48
6. ABS Labour Force Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australian ABS No 6287.0 Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000 page 4
7. ABS Labour Force Characteristics of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australian ABS No 6287.0 Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000 page 5