Aboriginal Employment Industry Clusters Program

The Hon. T.T. NGO (15:15): I have a question for the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation. Can the minister tell the chamber about how the government is helping to create Aboriginal employment opportunities?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Employment, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (15:15): I thank the honourable member for his question and his very deep interest in Aboriginal employment and, in particular, his role as the Chair of the Aboriginal Lands Parliamentary Standing Committee.

The barriers that many Aboriginal people face at times can seem insurmountable, in terms of finding employment. Apart from ensuring access to quality education for children, creating employment opportunities is one of the most impactful things any government can do to help break the cycle of disadvantage, not only for the person employed but for their family and, indeed, the economy. Good jobs change lives, especially for those who have had generations of disadvantage. A job fosters independence and restores dignity to people's lives. Most importantly, it can provide young people with a different outlook on life.

Supporting Aboriginal economic participation is one way that we will see meaningful change in Aboriginal people's lives and future generations, and that is why I am proud of this particular initiative that has been developed to promote and support Aboriginal economic participation. There are other initiatives, like the Aboriginal procurement policy, which increases participation of Aboriginal businesses in government procurement, and our own Aboriginal Business Connect register, which showcases over 70 South Australian owned Aboriginal businesses that work with the Office of the Industry Advocate to identify potential business opportunities.

Changing the future for Aboriginal people by employment is not something governments can do alone. That is why I am excited by the success of the Governor's Aboriginal Employment Industry Clusters Program, which was established with the Department of State Development in 2010. This particular initiative, the Governor's Aboriginal Employment Industry Clusters Program, has collectively supported over 1,100 Aboriginal people into industry-specific training, and over 800 people gaining employment.

The program is supported by the Governor but, importantly, is an employer-led initiative that has created jobs for Aboriginal people across nine industry clusters: accounting and finance; advanced manufacturing; community services; energy, water and resources; hospitality; infrastructure; legal services; local government; and the South Australian Public Service.

Last month, I was proud to join His Excellency the Governor and my very good friend the Independent Liberal member for Waite, the Minister for Defence Industries, Martin Hamilton-Smith—whose achievements would take me a whole question time to get through—at Government House for the announcement of the 10^th industry cluster defence, which will be chaired by the Chief Executive of Defence SA, Andy Keogh. We know that this state is in a transition phase between traditional manufacturing and more advanced technologies and high-tech manufacturing, and South Australia is in a prime position to be a leader in defence industries, just as we have, for the best part of half a century, been a leader in traditional manufacturing.

This defence cluster will facilitate projects and strategies that increase sustainable employment for Aboriginal people in the defence industries, through creating culturally safe workplaces for Aboriginal employees. The defence cluster is not just about placing Aboriginal people into defence industry jobs, there is a bigger emphasis on providing Aboriginal-owned businesses access to defence sector supply chain opportunities. This has the potential to create even greater economic potential for Aboriginal business owners by expanding their reach into the defence industry, many of whom have not been engaged in this area before.

Also unique to the defence cluster is the aim to increase the number of Aboriginal students studying STEM-related qualifications. There is a lot of work to be done in this area, but it is also crucial to ensure the defence industry has skilled and qualified Aboriginal people to take on some of these roles in the future. The defence cluster will be supported by having access to an Aboriginal student engagement and transition initiative developed by the Department of State Development, which will lead to better engagement with Aboriginal students at high school, TAFE and universities, highlighting what is possible if you study STEM subjects and to help create pathways.

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a South Australian Indigenous STEM camp and see firsthand some of the very promising Aboriginal high school students showing a keen interest in STEM fields. This Aboriginal STEM camp was organised by the Chair of the Aboriginal Employment Infrastructure Industry Cluster, Mr David Cruickshanks-Boyd, Flinders University and TAFE SA and saw 20 Aboriginal students attend the camp and being shown many of the educational and employment opportunities available in the STEM field. I would like to congratulate all those involved in the defence industry Aboriginal employment cluster and pay tribute to those who are creating these opportunities.