Project delivers Indigenous Jobs in South Australia

Minister for Indigenous Employment and Economic Development Mark Arbib today praised the recently completed Aboriginal Youth Employment Opportunities project at Mount Willoughby Station in northern South Australia.

Senator Arbib said the project helped to find jobs for six Indigenous job seekers in mining and pastoral industries after an intensive six weeks of training.

“This fantastic project demonstrates the flexibility of the Gillard Government’s Indigenous Employment programs,” Senator Arbib said.

“The Aboriginal Youth Employment Opportunities project involved training 10 Indigenous job seekers on Indigenous land with the assistance of the traditional owners, the Antakarinja people.

“Six of the 10 participants secured jobs in the mining and pastoral industries after completing training including welding, operating earth moving machinery, animal husbandry and general station work.

“This ‘outside the box’ method of training proved to be an important element in providing more culturally appropriate training to ensure all participants were aware of Indigenous traditions and culture.”

The project received more than $178,000 from the Australian Government’s Indigenous Employment Program and was conducted by Xceptional Recruitment at Mount Willoughby.

“The IEP is a key element of the Australian Government’s $4.6 billion investment to halve the employment gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians within a decade,” Senator Arbib said.