The labour market dynamics of Indigenous Australians

To date, the analysis of the reasons for the labour market disadvantage of Indigenous Australians has been constrained by the absence of longitudinal data on labour force status. This article uses the only extant large-scale longitudinal survey of the labour force outcomes of Indigenous Australians to analyse both labour market dynamics and the determinants of labour market success. The analysis reveals high rates of movements between labour force states by Indigenous Australians and that the Indigenous unemployed were around one-half as likely to move to employment over a 15-month period as were the non-Indigenous unemployed. The analysis presented in this article highlights the need for further longitudinal surveys of the labour market and social circumstances of Indigenous Australians.