Improving the Social and Economic Outcomes of Indigenous Australians

The assignment content highlights the disparities in social health determinants and unemployment rates among Indigenous Australians before and after 1990. The data shows a significant improvement in unemployment rate from 12% to 10%. This can be attributed to government actions and strategies. To further improve the situation, it is recommended that innovative and efficient measures are taken by the Australian government in favor of Indigenous Australians, ensuring their growth and well-being.

Social Policy

Major Principles of Neo-Liberalism vs. Keynesianism
The major principles of Neo-liberalism relate to the theory of distribution of income and theory
relating to determining the aggregate level of employment. About distribution of income, the
assertion as per the neo-liberalism stated that the payment to the inputs of production whether it
is to the labor or the capital is regarding their effort that they put to the final product. This is
assured by equilibrium at the demand as well as the supply levels. The payment is decided as per
the supply (shortage or surplus of labor) as well as per the demand (which is affected by the
effective level of productivity).For the theory of determination of aggregate employment,
according to neo-liberalists, the factors of production like capital and labor in case of the free
market would not remain idle but rather be put in use by the price mechanism. They believed in
the self-adjusting mechanism of the economy to the level of full employment as well as to the
use of monetary as well as fiscal policy so as to increase the level of employment permanently.
These two theories have been convincing and contrasted with the thoughts that prevailed in the
period between 1945 and 1980. In the initial years of this duration, the prevailing thought had
been that of Keynesianism where the focus had been on the theoretical framework of
determination of employment which stated that the level of economic activity is determined by
the levels of aggregate demand. He also stated that in the era of capitalism there are continuous
intervals when the process of generation of aggregate demand gets weak which leads to a rise in
the levels of unemployment. At times, this weakness becomes grave and thereby creating the
situation of depression (for example Great Depression 1921). In such a situation, the monetary,
as well as fiscal policy can be used to stabilize the process of creation of demand.

Though there had been complete consent among all the Keynesians on the theory of employment
determination, there had been a conflicting behavior witnessed in the theory of income
distribution. Such a conflict led to the victory of the thoughts of neo-liberalism.
Answer 2
In Australia, a minimum wage is witnessed more usually in the segment population of
youngsters as well as those that are employed as part-time workers.Although there has been
variation in the display for the series of the data, according to which the minimum wage
appeared to be common in the women section of the country. The structure of occupation of the
workers employed by minimum wage includes the workers who work in the factories, at the
agricultural farms, in the forest area as well in the food processing industries as well as the
medical service providers. The workers in small firms are employed in the largest proportion
under the minimum wage criteria.
In the list of the couples, the receiver of the minimum wage majorly the one who work on part
time basis or full time while the other person works full time at a much higher rate of earning. In
many cases, the minimum wage earner is an adult child who is still residing in his house. The
result of this is that although the minimum wage must go more to the lower income households
when the data is collected the minimum wage seems to be credited to the households all across
the distribution levels of income. Hence, as a result, although 1/3rd of the workers receiving
minimum wage are under the category of the poorest 20% of the working households but around
1/4th are under the category of the top 40% of the rich segment of the population. Thus on the
parameters of measures of relative income,the employees receiving minimum wage are only 1 to
2% which are under the section of low-income households rest receivers of the minimum wages

are those who are already having the decent standard of living leading to rising in the consistency
and gravity of poverty. The minimum wage is the relatively inefficient method to induce the rise
in the income of poor section of the country. To ensure the full level of employment, there is a
need to create a sufficient number of jobs. To create a large number of jobs, the larger amount of
fiscal deficit has to be tolerated by the economy. This is because the expenditure by the
government has to be in large amount so as to induce the private investment so that both of them
work together to create the demand for the potential level of production of the economy.
Significance of Minimum Wage in Australia
Minimum Wage in Australia becomes an important law in Australia people. It is more than a
safety net, but it is considered an important Australian Values. The idea of the minimum wage
considered workers as human beings and equal citizens, rather than treating them as mere units
or commodities in the cost of production. Generally, it can be said that the Australian range of
the minimum wage is high by international standards. Minimum wage plays an efficient role in
the growth of the Australia in comparison to other countries. It has a great significance in
growing the GDP of the country. The first significance of minimum wage in Australia is that
minimum wage brings future growth by improving the available job opportunities. Employment
is the biggest factor in the success of any country (McKenzie, 2014). Employment factor of the
Australia people is very strong. It becomes due to the evaluation of the minimum wage in the
country. It does not only enhance the per capita income of an individual but also brings a lot of
growth opportunities for them. Apart of this, another significance of the Australian minimum
wage is that it creates a degree of variation in the wages due to which it reflects the local labor
market conditions and cost of living in a significant manner. Minimum wage system has done
this by establishing a ‘Minimum Wage Benchmark.' Moreover, the minimum wage in Australia

is also significant because it prevents the youth from entering the labor market. Minimum Wage
in Australia does this by enhancing their skills and knowledge in the different fields. This will
help them in enhancing their wage level on a timely basis. Apart of this, high minimum wage
also acts as an impediment to the effectiveness of government programs to get people back to
work. Thus, it can be said that minimum wage level in Australia has a greater importance in the
success of the Australian economy. Only the minimum wage is responsible for its growth and
enhancement in GDP.
Effects of Minimum Wage on work-rich and work-poor families
Generally, it can be said that minimum wage influences the work-rich and the work-poor
families in both positive and negative manner. The work-rich families comprised those families
where all working-age members were in paid work. On the other hand, work-poor families
comprised those families where no-one in paid work. Furthermore, the positive influences of the
minimum wage on work-rich families are; leveling the playing field in their capitalist society,
and enhancement in their regular income (Whiteford, 2014). Both of these positive influences of
minimum wage motivate the work-rich society by giving them an opportunity to grow
themselves and their standards.
Apart of this, minimum wage also influences the work-poor families in a greater manner. The
positive impacts of the minimum wages are greater than its negative outcomes. So, most of the
work-poor families go in favor of the minimum wage in Australia. The first and the foremost
benefit which the minimum wage will bring with it is that enhancement in earning capacity and
per capita income of an individual. With the help of such positive influence of the minimum
wage act, they can spend their life in accordance to their desires. This will bring improvement in
their personality as well as in living standard also. On the other hand, minimum wage also has

some negative influences which become the life of work-poor families full of trouble. The first
negative influence of minimum wage for work-poor families is that it becomes the main reason
of inflation in the country. High inflation becomes the main reason of the unequal distribution of
the income in the country. From the facts and figures of the last few years clearly, indicates that
minimum wage brings inflation with it. Due to the inflation, values of all goods and services
increases in a significant manner. This will become the life of work-poor families difficult. Thus,
it can be said that minimum wage does not only comes with the positive benefits but also comes
with the negative influences which have a greater potential of affect the life of work-rich and
work-poor families in a greater manner. That's why it can be said that work-rich and work-poor
families of Australia need to have a better preparation for managing the influences of the
minimum wage in an efficient manner.
Possibility of Full employment policy Success in Australia
Full employment is the level of employment rates where there is no deficient-demand
unemployment. The possibility of full employment policy success is less in Australia. It is
because no one expects full employment to mean % unemployment. There will always be some
unemployment due to the presence of a large number of reasons such as poverty. The desire for
the full employment for Australia is a long-held commitment only which can never convert into
reality. It is because sometimes the person has skills but at that time not availability of jobs can
found there. Apart of this, full employment policy success requires the stability of the currency
of Australia (Tomyn, 2014). The presence of stability can lead full employment up to some
extent but not so. The unemployment rate of Australia is continuously growing day by day. It
may be due to the presence of a large number of reasons. It can be said that during 1966, the
unemployment rate is Australia was only 2%. At that time, Australia can gain success in full

employment by performing some additional efforts. But now, it becomes 6% which is quite
difficult to transform in the full employment. That’s why it can be said that there is no any
success chance of full-employment policy in Australia. It can clearly understand by the below-
mentioned figure:
Unemployment Rate in Australia
Answer 3
By overall comparison of the 1990s to that of the present era, it has been witnessed that the
health of Indigenous section of the population has worsened in comparison to non-Indigenous.
They have lower status in comparison to even the poorest and the most disadvantaged section of
the society. They have the lower level of life expectancy, and the scope of reduction in inequality
among them is very restricted. The level of poverty, as well as the inequality levels that they
witness, are the consequence of the treatment that they have been receiving historically as human
beings. There has unequal status in health services on account of systematic bias that they have

witnessed since decades. They have not been given access to the luxurious living standards that
have been enjoyed by the majority of the population in Australia.Under the report of Social
Determinants of Indigenous Health, there have been enough contributors from around the world
to evaluate the long run effect on the health as per the experiences of Indigenous people who
have witnessed racist behavior as well as complete isolation from the society. Under the report,
various parameters such as poverty, class bias, unequal distribution of social capital as well as
housing facilities were taken as the fundamentals for policy making in respect of Indigenous
Australians. In the end, a policy framework has been structured under the report to outline the
potentially effective health intervention measures by social parameters in the economy. For the
making of the report, the health professionals and researchers from the Indigenous section of
Australia were consulted.
Yes, it is quite true that the Indigenous Australian social, healthy situations quite changed since
the time of the ‘Redfern Speech.' This speech is considered one of the most significant speeches
ever delivered by a politician in Australia. Before the commitment of the Redfern speech, the
health of indigenous people was measured by life expectancy. It is significantly worse than the
current measurement system of nowadays. Broadly speaking Australian saw a large number of
health improvements for indigenous populations in Australia after 1990 (Thurber 2015). Before
1990, there is a huge gap between the indigenous and mainstream Australian populations.
However, during 1980 to 1990, a stalling and slowing of indigenous health improvements
measured by life expectancy (Maple‐Brown, 2014). It means that the gap failed to close
significantly or even widened.
Apart of this, it can be said that improving the health status of indigenous people is quite difficult
and a longstanding challenge in front of the Australian government. Before 1990, the health

status of indigenous people is poor in comparison to the rest of the Australian population. There
remains a large inequality gap in Australia across all statistics. Furthermore, before 1990 the
indigenous people also don't have an equal growth opportunity to be as healthy as non-
indigenous Australians. This places them at greater risk of exposure to environmental and
behavioral health risk factors as does the higher proportion of indigenous households that live in
conditions that do not support good health. Moreover, the Australian Indigenous has been very
little progress in reducing this equality gap between the different Australians. This will enhance
the level of dissatisfaction among the indigenous Australians.
But, after the passing of 1990, a large number of health improvements can see among indigenous
Australians such as death rates from cardiovascular disease have fallen 30% (Maple‐Brown,
2014). Apart of this, after 1990, a large number of changes in the health schemes of indigenous
people have been made by the Australian governments such as enhancement of the health
programs to keep pace with demand and maintain the health status quo of indigenous
Australians. One of the important schemes introduced by the Australian government in favor of
Indigenous health is the formulation of the international convent on Economic, cultural, and
social rights. This scheme of the Australian government mainly provides the Indigenous the right
of enjoyment and a good standard of mental and physical health.
On the other hand, after 1990 a large number of programs have been started by the government
to improve the health situations of the Indigenous Australian. Some policies of the government
emphasize the different sectors of civil society by treating their outcomes as a matter of legal
obligation (Mendham, 2015). Apart from this, the new fundamental principles also introduce by
the government to control the health situations of Indigenous Australians. One of them is that

indigenous people will not discriminate against and are provided with equality of opportunity
and rights.
Furthermore, it can be said that before 1990, the average household income for Indigenous
Australians was $ 114, but during 2002 it becomes the $584 or 65% of the rate for non-
indigenous people. Apart of this, before 1990, the unemployment rate for Indigenous Australians
was 12% which is now 10% (Hunt, 2015). This will represent that there is a huge linkage
between the social health determinants of Indigenous Australians before and after 1990. This
difference can significantly improve by taking the appropriate actions and building efficient
strategies. This can perform under the team of experts and the concerned people. Thus, it can be
said that it becomes necessary for the government of the Australia to do something innovative
and efficient in favor of Indigenous Australians. This will help them grow in their life and live
efficiently.

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3) Indigenous Australians
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