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Chapter 4: Recruiting Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders to the APS

Effective strategies for attracting and recruiting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees to the APS will be an important part of overall strategies to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation.

This chapter begins by examining existing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees’ pathways to employment in the APS. It looks at prior employment, classification on commencement with the APS, the way in which Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders were recruited to the APS, and whether they chose to relocate to take up an APS position. A better understanding of these aspects of current Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees’ pathways to employment in the APS may help in developing more effective attraction and recruitment strategies in the future.

The chapter also examines the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees about recruitment processes in the APS. It looks at a range of issues including views on how the APS might best increase Indigenous representation, confidence about applying for positions in the APS, preferences for targeted or mainstream approaches to recruitment, experience with participation on selection panels, and views about the extent to which merit is applied in recruitment and promotion decisions.

Commencing in the APS

A number of factors are likely to influence the capacity of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders to enter the APS, including their education levels, their previous employment experiences, their interest in working in the APS, and the effectiveness of APS recruitment processes. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employee survey asked a number of questions in order to identify the profile of Indigenous employees being recruited to the APS, and the types of recruitment processes used by agencies.

Immediately prior to joining the APS

Respondents were asked about their immediate experiences prior to joining the APS. While diverse, the most common responses were:

employed in the private sector (31%)
student (21%)
employed in the state or local government sectors (including universities) (17%)
unemployed (looking for work) (12%)
employed by an Indigenous community organisation (for example, a land council or health service) (11%).

Less commonly, respondents were previously employed in the non-APS Commonwealth public sector²² (4%), not in the labour force (not looking for work) (4%), employed under the Commonwealth Development Employment Projects programme (3%), employed by a non-government organisation and/or charity (3%), or self-employed (2%).

Experience prior to joining the APS was related to a number of different factors, including:

Respondents at the APS 1–2 levels were more likely to have been unemployed prior to joining the APS (21% compared with 7% to 13% for other classifications) and respondents at the APS 5–6 and EL classifications were more likely to have been previously employed in state or local government (22% compared with 9% to 15% for other classifications).
The majority of respondents under the age of 25 had been either students (44%) or private sector employees (29%) immediately prior to joining the APS. The proportion of respondents previously in private sector employment was similar across all age groups, but as respondents’ ages increased, so did the proportion that had been employed in state or local government. Those aged 45 or over were more likely to have been previously employed by an Indigenous community organisation than were younger respondents.
A higher proportion of respondents located in the ACT (35%) were students before joining the APS than those located outside the ACT (18%). This may be linked to a higher intake of graduates and cadets in the ACT. Twenty-three per cent of employees in the ACT began work as a cadet and/or a graduate compared to 4% outside the ACT.
Respondents from rural and remote areas were more likely to be employed in work related to the Indigenous community (around 16% each) and less likely to be students (around 13% each) than respondents in capital cities and metropolitan areas (both around 8% and 25% respectively).
Respondents who currently undertake work in the APS related to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community were more likely to have been previously employed in Indigenous community organisations than those who were not performing this role (16% compared to 6%). Those not working with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community were more likely to have been employed in the private sector than those working with the Indigenous community (36% compared with 26%).

Previous employment with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community

Respondents were also asked if their previous role outside the APS had involved working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and/or communities and/or Indigenous business. Previous experience in such roles was common, with 43% of respondents indicating that this had been the case.

Respondents were more likely to have worked previously in roles involving working with Indigenous people, communities or businesses if they:

were aged 35 or over
worked in medium agencies (53% compared to 43% for small and 42% for medium agencies)
were from rural and remote areas
worked in identified positions or were working directly with Indigenous communities
had fewer years of service (those with five years or less of service were more likely to have previously worked in Indigenous roles prior to joining the APS than those with 11 years or more of service).

Classification level on joining the APS

The survey asked respondents to indicate the classification level at which they were employed when they first joined the APS. Overall, the data confirmed that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees tend to join the APS at lower classification levels than other employees.

Table 4.1 outlines the differing proportions of respondents that started at the respective classification levels. The majority of respondents commenced in the APS at the APS 1–2 (44%) or APS 3–4 (18%) levels or as a trainee and/or apprentice (18%).

Table 4.1: Classification levels on commencement in the APS

Classification Level	Percentage %
Trainee /Apprentice	18
Cadet (e.g. National Indigenous Cadetship Project)	5
Graduate (e.g. Agency Graduate programme)	3
APS 1–2 (or equivalent)	44
APS 3–4 (or equivalent)	18
APS 5–6 (or equivalent)	7
Executive Level 1 (or equivalent)	1
Executive Level 2 (or equivalent)	0
Senior Executive Service (or equivalent)	0
Not sure	4

Source: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APS Employees Census Survey

These results compare with data from the Australian Public Service Employment Database (APSED), which shows that of all engagements to the APS over the last 15 years, 28% have been at the APS 1–2 levels, 34% at the APS 3–4 classifications and 18% at the APS 5–6 levels.

The results highlight the importance of trainee positions for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander recruitment. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees were substantially more likely to be engaged as trainees, cadets or graduate trainees than APS employees generally over the last 15 years (26% compared to 11% for all APS employees).²³

Classification level at commencement was related to a number of factors, namely:

Younger respondents were more likely to indicate that they had commenced in the APS as trainees or apprentices or cadets than were older employees (29% of employees under 25 and 25% of employees aged 25 to 34 indicated that they had commenced as trainees or apprentices compared to between 5% and 15% in older age groups, while 23% of employees aged under 25 had commenced as cadets, compared to between 1% and 7% for other age groups).
Fourteen per cent of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees located in the ACT began their APS careers as cadets, while only 3% of those employees located outside the ACT began in this manner.
A larger proportion of those who do not currently undertake work relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community commenced work as trainees or apprentices compared to those who do currently undertake work relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.
Reflecting changes in the overall APS classification profile, those with shorter periods of service (10 years or less) were more likely to have commenced at the APS 3–4 levels than those with 11 years or more of service, and were less likely to have commenced at the APS 1–2 levels. Those with longer periods of service (11 years or more) were more likely to have begun work as a trainee or apprentice than those with 10 years or less of service.

Employment category on joining the APS

Respondents were asked whether they had joined the APS as ongoing or non-ongoing employees. Over two-thirds of respondents (71%) reported that they commenced in the APS as ongoing employees.

Employees were less likely to have commenced as ongoing employees if they:

were aged less than 25 (57% compared to between 67% and 82% for other age groups) (this may be related to the fact that younger employees were also more likely to commence as a trainee and/or apprentice than were older employees)
were at the APS 1–2 levels (63% compared to 80% for EL employees)
were from small agencies (47% compared to 69% for medium and 72% for large agencies)
were from remote areas (63% compared to 73% from capital cities and 74% from metropolitan areas)
had five years or less of service (65% compared to between 69% and 79% for those with longer periods of service)
had lower-level educational qualifications (between 65% and 71% compared to 81% for those with tertiary qualifications).

Processes used to recruit Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees to the APS

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees were asked to identify whether they had entered the APS through general recruitment processes, such as positions generally advertised in the Australian Public Service Gazette and newspapers, or whether they had come through Indigenous-specific recruitment processes which catered specifically for Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders.

Indigenous-specific recruitment processes may include special employment measures or identified positions. The survey did not ask respondents to identify which type of Indigenous-specific recruitment process they had been recruited through.

Special measures involve limiting a specified employment opportunity to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants within the framework provided by Commonwealth discrimination legislation and the Public Service Act 1999 (the Act).²⁴ Examples of such measures include the National Indigenous Cadetship Project (NICP), some traineeship or apprenticeship programmes, and the recent Indigenous Graduate programme run by the Australian Public Service Commission (the Commission).

Identified positions, as outlined in Chapter 3, have specific selection criteria that require applicants to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander societies and cultures, and an ability to communicate sensitively and effectively with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. These positions are open to all Australians and have to be won on merit.

The majority of respondents indicated that they were recruited through general recruitment processes (53%). However, a substantial number were recruited through Indigenous-specific recruitment processes (37%), while a further 6% indicated that they were recruited through ‘other’ avenues and 4% were not sure.

Respondents were more likely to be recruited through general recruitment processes if they:

were aged 35 and above (between 55% and 60% of the older age groups had been recruited through general recruitment processes, compared to 50% for employees aged between 25 and 34 and 34% for those aged under 25); while data was not collected on the particular nature of Indigenous-specific recruitment processes, the lower rates of general recruitment processes for younger employees may reflect the fact that they were also more likely to have commenced in the APS as trainees and/or apprentices, cadets and/or graduates, some of which may be Indigenous-specific programmes
were EL employees (71% compared to between 47% and 53% for other classifications)
were from small agencies (62% compared to 55% for medium and 52% for large agencies)
worked outside the ACT (55% compared to 41% for those within the ACT)
were from rural (56%) and remote (60%) areas (compared to 50% for capital cities and 54% for metropolitan areas).

The following comments provide some insight into the types of APS recruitment processes experienced by respondents to the survey.

I was recruited to APS through APS Indigenous Exam. When I sat for this exam there were at least 50 other Indigenous persons who also sat for this exam. Due to this exam not being provided at this time, I feel VERY FEW Indigenous persons apply for APS positions as they feel they will not get a ‘fair chance’.

I was asked to join temporarily then became full-time permanent following successful trial periods.

I received an Indigenous scholarship in my last year of university studies… upon graduating [I was offered] a graduate position within central office of [agency] in Canberra.

The youth traineeship was an excellent program and assisted in me having an adequate and appropriate orientation, induction and training to support and retain not just me but other Indigenous staff.

Commenced as a clerical assistant in a remote locality and slowly progressed through various government agencies.

I initially commenced as a trainee then left to do full time study then rejoined as a clerk class 6 (APS 5–6).

Requirement to leave home to take up a position in the APS

Anecdotal reports have suggested that some Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders may be reluctant to leave their home location due to family or community commitments. The survey asked respondents to indicate if they had left home to take up a position in the APS. Twenty-five per cent of respondents indicated that they had left their home location or extended family to take up their current position in the APS, while the majority (75%) had not.

Respondents were more likely to have left their home location or extended family to take up their position in the APS if they:

were aged 54 or less (between 23% and 28%) or had less than one year of service (37%)
were in higher classifications (30% for APS 5–6 employees and 44% for EL employees, compared to 18% for APS 1–2 employees and 20% for APS 3–4 employees)
were working in the ACT (49% compared to 19% of employees working outside the ACT)
had tertiary qualifications (46%)
were male (31% of men compared to 22% of women).

The survey also explored whether employees intended to leave the APS in the next three years. Of the 16% intending to leave, only a small proportion indicated that returning home to family or country was a reason for their intention, with 10% of this group indicating that they intended to leave the APS to return to family and 6% to return home to country. Intention to leave the APS is explored in more detail in Chapter 5.

Some respondents provided comments about leaving home and extended family to take up a position in the APS.

Relocating, whether it be for term transfer or transfer because of a higher position, has had a significant social and financial impact on my family. To entertain any idea of relocating will require me to consider not only my career but the impact a move will have on my whole family. Working in different locations has had significant benefits which has certainly made me a better employee. While I have benefited, my family has been disrupted. After a while, this disruption becomes too much.

I am a single mother of two children and I had to move from Townsville to Brisbane to take up this permanent position at my own expense. I had no family support what-so-ever. I was granted a transfer after 6 months back to Townsville on so-called “compassionate grounds”, again at my own expense.

I returned home to work in that area so that I could contribute something back to my community (i.e. effective and efficient service delivery, setting standards).

I had to move to take up the job of my choice. I was offered other locations, but chose to move to another due to being closer to family members.

My first commitment is the security & stability of my family, and although I would like to apply for higher roles, I live in a regional area and opportunities to gain experience at higher levels rarely present themselves locally, and if are available in the area would require travel, which have a negative impact on my family. (Child care issues for school aged children in regional NSW have a major impact).

Getting into the APS— Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander recruitment

To explore recruitment issues for Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders further, the survey asked respondents for their views in relation to a series of attitudinal statements relating to recruitment. Respondents were asked for their views about increasing Indigenous representation in the APS, applying for APS positions, preference for different types of vacancies, participation on selection panels and merit in recruitment processes. The following section examines responses to these issues.

Increasing Indigenous representation in the APS

Respondents were asked to rate their level of agreement about whether a range of employment strategies could increase Indigenous representation in the APS. Results for these questions are detailed at Table 4.2.

Survey results indicate support for both Indigenous-specific and general recruitment processes to facilitate the employment of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders. Table 4.2 shows that respondents were most likely to agree that increasing traineeships and/or apprenticeships (90%), increased use of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander graduate programmes and cadetships (89%), and agencies promoting general vacancies more broadly to Indigenous Australians (87%) would be good ways of increasing Indigenous representation in the APS.

Targeted recruitment strategies such as identified positions and special employment measures were also seen as potential ways to increase Indigenous representation in the APS. Respondents were least likely to agree that increasing the number of APS 1 positions would be a means of increasing Indigenous representation in the APS, although a majority still agreed that this would facilitate increased Indigenous representation.

Table 4.2: Potential approaches to increasing Indigenous representation in the APS

	Agree (%)	Disagree (%)
More traineeships/apprenticeships	90	3
Indigenous graduate programmes/cadetships	89	3
Promoting general vacancies more broadly	87	1
More identified positions	78	5
Vacancies only open to Indigenous Australians	70	10
Increasing numbers of APS 1 positions	64	16

Source: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APS Employees Census Survey

Views about the best options the APS could use to increase Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representation were related to a number of factors. These include:

Employees from small, rather than larger, agencies were more likely to support increasing the availability of traineeships and/or apprenticeships, greater use of graduate programmes, and advertising vacancies that are open only to Indigenous Australians.
Respondents from lower classification levels were more likely to support advertising vacancies that are open only to Indigenous Australians and increasing numbers of APS 1 positions than were EL employees.
Those who work with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community were more likely to support greater use of identified positions, vacancies open only to Indigenous Australians, and greater use of APS 1 employees than those who do not.
Women, respondents aged 35 or over, respondents outside the ACT and those in rural or remote localities were also more likely to express support for the increased use of APS 1 positions than were other employees.

Comments from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees provide mixed views on the best way to increase Indigenous representation.

Indigenous cadetships or traineeships, identified positions, vacancies or a quota system, only open to Indigenous people and having mentors/coaches for [these] positions, is the way to go; if you want more Indigenous people working in the APS.

…. graduates are preferred; this makes it very difficult for Aboriginal people.

I think there needs to be an increase of opportunities at all levels within the Public Sector for Indigenous people. Not just at the APS 1 level.

I do not support programs that further accentuate the segregation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous employees. At least for Indigenous cadetships and graduate programs, the segregation is short term.

I feel lower paid positions are not the answer as this will encourage employers just to keep Indigenous staff in low levels. I think that introducing mentoring at all levels when an Indigenous person starts in the position will help with retentions and career development, by providing support.

I think that offering traineeships etc are a good way to get Aboriginal people in but it is a matter of sustaining their interest and having opportunities after the training that will build capacity.

The Cadetship program should be more widely communicated to Indigenous students and other agencies should make a commitment to the program.

I do not agree with having an increase in Identified positions or Indigenous only positions as there are plenty of Indigenous people in our communities who are skilled, very competitive with the general population and have a lot to offer in the APS. My opinion is to encourage our people to build on their skill base to become more competitive with the general applicants in competing for jobs. We don’t need ‘Special treatment’.

APS 1 positions would be good in remote locations as the job market is restrictive and provide training for Indigenous people.

I participated in the Graduate intake under the new recruitment process when it was first trialled and believe that it is not a very user friendly format particularly for mature aged Indigenous applicants.

… in relation to the use of graduate/NICP positions I think NICP is a great idea as it supports participants through a degree and both are good recruitment tools, however I don’t think they necessarily target that hard to get group amongst Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People that traineeships etc. may.

Applying for positions in the APS—selection processes

A key factor in attracting Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders to the APS is their views about recruitment processes, and their confidence that they are able to understand and participate in selection processes. Respondents to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employee survey were asked a series of questions relating to the selection process for APS vacancies and if they had any preferences regarding the type of positions they choose to apply for.

Over three-quarters of respondents (77%) agreed that they were able to interpret the selection documentation and/or job package and understand what is required of them in submitting their job application for APS vacancies. This result is very positive, but it needs to be borne in mind that all respondents to the survey are existing APS employees. This result does not necessarily represent the views of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders who are seeking APS employment.

Respondents were more likely to be confident in interpreting selection documentation and/or job packages if they were:

EL employees or employees with higher educational qualifications
from within the ACT
working in small agencies.

Sixty-five per cent of respondents agreed that ‘I do not have any difficulty in addressing the selection criteria when applying for job vacancies.’ However, 17% indicated that they did have difficulties and a further 17% were undecided.

Respondents were more likely to agree that they had no difficulty in addressing selection criteria if they:

were aged 45 or over
were at higher classification levels or had tertiary qualifications
were from small and medium agencies
were located inside the ACT.

Just over two-thirds (67%) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander respondents agreed that they feel confident they are able to present themselves well at interviews.

Respondents were more likely to agree if they:

were from small and medium agencies
were at higher classifications or held higher-level educational qualifications.

Surprisingly, length of service did not assure confidence at interview, with those with shorter periods of service (five years or less) more likely to agree that they were confident they are able to present themselves well at interviews than those with longer periods of service (11 or more years).

Respondents were also asked for their views on whether ‘in my experience the use of recruitment providers/ assessment centres provided me with a fair and objective assessment of my skills’. Results against this statement were much less positive than views about understanding of, and confidence in, their own ability to participate in selection exercises. While 21% of employees said that this statement did not apply to them, only 31% of respondents agreed, with a further 30% neither agreeing nor disagreeing and 18% disagreeing. The extent of disagreement with the proposition that assessments of skills were fair and objective varied according to agency size, with respondents from large agencies showing higher levels of disagreement than those from small and medium agencies.

While respondents were generally positive about their own ability in relation to selection processes, some comments by respondents reflected concerns that selection processes could be a barrier to Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders seeking employment in the APS for the first time. Some respondents also provided suggestions for attracting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees to the APS.

Most Indigenous people I know have trouble with addressing selection criteria and the whole process, especially those that have not left the community or pursued studies.

Developing clear career pathways via training would be good for promoting Indigenous people because it is often difficult for them to promote and sell themselves via a selection criteria process due to the academic base needed to participate in the process.

I would like to see greater assistance for Indigenous staff, or prospective staff, i.e. assistance with completing and understanding job applications and criterion, unless you have been in the game for a while these can be daunting and sometimes understanding the criteria too can be very off putting. I have seen too many Indigenous staff fall by the way side because they can’t put on to paper their skills that are invaluable to an agency like ours.

The recruitment process needs to [be] shortened and appropriate to the locality, otherwise the process can be very daunting, often there are 3–4 people on the panel and can stop a person from responding in a natural/ comfortable manner. The recruitment needs to be streamlined.

I find advertising in community/local papers is a good way to locate possible recruits, not everyone buys big name papers like the West Australian. If there is something for free out there, they will opt for that first.

The recruitment ads need to be advertised more than once in the local papers.

I think all selection criteria for jobs in the public service are written in jargon and only readily understandable to other public servants, not the person in the street. I strongly recommend all selection criteria be written in plain non jargonistic language. Website information should give examples of how to answer selection criteria—some outside applicants do not know how to address criteria—particularly Indigenous criteria.

I feel that Recruitment Agencies can be culturally biased and from my own experience they will often test skills which are not required for the job.

Types of vacancies—mainstream and targeted recruitment processes

In addition to the questions discussed above which explored respondents’ views of the type of recruitment processes that would increase Indigenous representation in the APS, the survey also asked a series of questions about whether respondents themselves would prefer to apply, or would feel more comfortable applying, for positions through targeted or mainstream recruitment processes (see Table 4.3). The results suggest that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees hold a diverse range of views about targeted and mainstream recruitment processes.

Table 4.3: Vacancy types and preferences

	Agree (%)	Neither agree nor disagree (%)	Disagree (%)
I would prefer to apply for a vacancy advertised as an identified position	43	41	15
I would prefer to apply for a vacancy advertised as only open to Indigenous Australians	34	40	24
I would prefer to compete in a general recruitment process	45	44	10
I would not apply for a position that was advertised as an identified position	9	32	56
I would not apply for a position that was advertised as only open to Indigenous Australians	12	31	54

Source: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APS Employees Census Survey

Forty-three per cent of respondents agreed that they would prefer to apply for a vacancy that was an identified position and 15% disagreed. Nevertheless, only 9% of respondents agreed that ‘I would not apply for a position that was advertised as an identified position.’

A third of respondents agreed that they would prefer to apply for a vacancy that was advertised as being open only to Indigenous Australians, but 24% disagreed. When respondents were asked to indicate their level of agreement with the statement ‘I would not apply for a position that was advertised as only open to Indigenous Australians’, only 12% agreed with this statement.

Forty-five per cent of respondents agreed that they would prefer to compete in a general recruitment process, similar to the results for identified positions. However, only 10% of respondents disagreed with this statement.

For all processes, there was a relatively high ‘neither agree nor disagree’ response.

Preference for particular types of recruitment processes was related to a number of factors, namely:

Respondents at the APS 1–2 levels were more likely than EL employees to prefer to apply for identified positions (52% and 32% respectively), and positions advertised as open only to Indigenous Australians (47% compared to 17%). EL employees were more likely to prefer to compete in general recruitment proc-esses than were APS 1–6 employees.
Those without tertiary qualifications were more likely to prefer to apply for an identified position or a position open only to Indigenous Australians.
Respondents from remote areas were more likely to agree that they would prefer to apply for positions open only to Indigenous Australians than were respondents from other localities, but they were also more likely to agree that they would prefer to compete in general recruitment processes than were their capital city and metropolitan area counterparts.
Respondents currently working in an identified position or those whose work is specifically related to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community both reported higher levels of agreement that they would prefer to apply for an identified position or a position that was open only to Indigenous Australians than respondents not in these roles. Respondents in other roles were more likely to report a preference for competing in general recruitment processes.
Length of service also had some impact, with those who had shorter periods of service (up to five years of service) more likely to agree that they would apply for an identified position than those with between six and 20 years of service.

The following comments provide a sample of respondents’ views on targeted and mainstream recruitment processes.

… I still believe that if you are working in an identified position the ability to communicate sensitively and effectively with Indigenous Australians and a knowledge and understanding of circumstances is essential but we don’t seem to be putting that much weight or importance on such knowledge, abilities and skills.

I believe the Identified positions are a good ‘doorway’ to Indigenous Australians into the APS. It is then up to the individual person if they wish to stay in the ‘Indigenous’ field or to go into the ‘General’ area where vacancies and/or higher duties exists.

I believe that creating identified positions is not the only way to increase Indigenous participation in the APS— workplace support once appointments are made is important… a more active method than advertising in the general press is required. Information needs to go out into various networks through various media, including word of mouth. Advertising is often too passive and detached to attract Indigenous people.

… the idea of making a general position open only to Indigenous people is a great idea and would encourage Indigenous people to apply for mainstream jobs as not everyone wants to work in Indigenous related fields.

… My view is to recruit through general vacancies but make Indigenous applicants aware of applying for these positions. This way they are not being singled out as only getting the job on their aboriginality and not their ability. …. My other view is to apply for positions that are for mainstream applicants and this then allows more positions available for other Indigenous applicants.

I prefer to work and have always worked in mainstream because I’ve found that identified positions limit your ability to apply for different types of work within the agency… and I’ve always seen them as dead end jobs because people think that is all you are capable of!

Whilst I believe Identified Positions are good—I believe that we need to encourage more mainstream positions within offices to dispel any thoughts that ‘other’ staff may have about our ability to perform the work—also to promote positive images of Indigenous workers—not only to your workmates but to the public too.

I prefer a more level playing field for all—why should some positions be only available for Indigenous Australians, or any other part of our society? We should be made to feel equal and have the same chances.

Participation on selection panels

Selection panels play an important role in APS recruitment processes. Many APS agencies encourage selection panels to draw from the diversity of their existing workforce, particularly when assessing applicants from groups such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees.

Respondents were asked to indicate whether they had been a member of a selection panel. Fifty-three per cent of respondents indicated that they had been selection panel members. The level of participation in selection panels increased with age, classification and length of service. Respondents were also more likely to have participated in selection panels if they came from a small agency, or if their job specifically involved working with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community.

Respondents who had participated as a member of a selection panel were asked to respond to three attitudinal statements relating to panels. The statements related to their confidence in participation, the training provided to fulfil their role, and whether others recognised the value of their contribution.

Eighty-six per cent of relevant respondents agreed they felt confident being a member of a selection panel, while only 4% disagreed. Respondents from small agencies (96%) were more likely to express confidence than those from medium (82%) or large (87%) agencies.

All respondents who had been a member of a selection panel were asked to rate their level of agreement with the helpfulness of any training received. Forty-nine per cent of relevant respondents agreed that the training received about being a member of a selection panel had helped them to fulfil the duties of that role, with 20% neither agreeing nor disagreeing, 18% disagreeing and 14% indicating that the question was not applicable, perhaps indicating that this group had not received any training. Respondents were more likely to find training helpful if they were from older age groups or had long periods of service (16 or more years).

The majority of employees (83%) agreed that their contribution as a member of a selection panel was valued by other members. Higher levels of agreement with this statement came from EL employees, and respondents from small agencies.

The following comments provide some respondents’ views on selection panel participation.

Selection Advisory committee training is needed urgently from the APS Commission in this dept.

There are currently no guides or training available in my Department on how to apply the Identified Criteria—either as a panel member or as an applicant. This leaves it open to interpretation and panel members exposed without a policy to refer to when the delegate and their panel members wish to diminish the value of the criteria.

Merit in the recruitment process

Confidence that the APS has merit-based selection processes that are fair is a key factor both in attracting Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders to the APS, and in ensuring that assessment for all applicants, including Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders, focuses on the relative capacity of candidates to achieve outcomes related to the duties.

Respondents were asked to indicate their agreement with the statement, ‘overall, I think recruitment and promotion decisions in my agency are fair.’ Forty-two per cent agreed with this statement, while 27% neither agreed nor disagreed and 28% disagreed. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees were more likely to agree that recruitment and promotion decisions in their agency were fair than were APS employees generally. Only 35% of APS employees reported that ‘overall, I think recruitment and promotion decisions in my agency are fair and reasonable’, 34% neither agreed nor disagreed and 30% disagreed.²⁵

Respondents were more likely to agree that recruitment and promotion decisions in their agency were fair if they:

were from medium agencies
were from remote and rural areas
had less than one year of APS service.

The following are comments made by respondents to the survey about the issue of merit generally.

As in many agencies the recruitment process is questionable and while they may appear fair they are sometimes aimed at a particular individual.

Recruitment and promotion on the whole in my agency seem fair however selection for short term higher duties I view at times to be without merit and not overt.

I think my agency’s recruitment and promotion decisions are generally fair in that the processes are established and generally transparent (although there have been times when they have been a bit questionable).

Key findings

The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employee survey provides a picture of the range of experience of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders entering the APS. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees bring a diverse range of backgrounds to the APS. While a large proportion have worked with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, communities or business, they also bring experiences from a range of sectors including the private sector, state and local government and non-government organisations. Agencies can benefit by using this broad range of experience in both their mainstream and Indigenous-specific positions.

Agencies are using a range of processes to bring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees into the APS. While just over half of these employees have been recruited through general recruitment processes, a large proportion are recruited through Indigenous-specific recruitment processes. The fact that employees aged under 25 were less likely than older employees to have been recruited through general recruitment processes may be related to the fact that employees under 25 were also more likely to have commenced in the APS as trainees and/or apprentices or cadets and/or graduates, with some agencies using Indigenous-specific trainee and graduate trainee positions.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees have a mixed range of views about recruitment processes. Views appear to be split on whether as individuals employees would prefer to apply for identified positions, positions restricted to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees, or positions advertised through general processes, with a sizeable proportion of employees expressing no particular preference. Despite this divide in opinion most respondents saw a role for Indigenous-specific recruitment processes, including identified positions and special measures, in helping to increase the representation of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders in the APS. It is likely that there will continue to be an important role for Indigenous-specific recruitment processes, complementing general recruitment processes, in helping to maintain and improve the representation of Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders in the APS for some time into the future.

There is also considerable variation among different groups of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees both in the way that they were recruited to the APS, and in their views about recruitment. In particular, employees at higher classifications and with higher educational qualifications, show a stronger preference for general recruitment processes and more confidence in their ability to participate in selection processes.

The low levels of agreement that recruitment processes within the agency are fair, while more positive than the views of APS employees generally, are of some concern. Given the broader APS results, it is likely that these issues do not relate specifically to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander issues. Nevertheless, agencies need to bear in mind the importance of general employee confidence in agency recruitment processes when developing specific strategies for attracting and recruiting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees to their organisation.

²² For example, Australia Post, the Australian Defence Force and the Australian Government Solicitor.

²³ Source: APSED.

²⁴ Public Service Commissioner’s Directions 1999, 4.2, 4.3 and 4.6A.

²⁵ APS employee results come from the 2005 State of the Service employee survey and were reported in the State of the Service Report 2004–05 and/or the State of the Service Employee Survey Results 2004–05.