Indigenous pay gap is worth an honest conversation

Recent Indigenous pay gap revelations are an opportunity for businesses to consider the systems and structures that affect Indigenous employment.

In light of recent findings that Indigenous employees earn, on average, 16 per cent less per hour than Australian workers overall, Wiradjuri man and business leader Hayden Charles is urging employers to reconsider recruitment, internal culture, and the breadth of employment opportunities for Indigenous workers.

According to Charles, who is the co-founder and managing director of Indigenous Commercial Corporation (ICC) and group social and responsibility director at SKG Services, businesses need to question the factors impacting Indigenous workers both before and during employment.

“We need to ask: Are Indigenous applicants being recruited into the same range of roles as other applicants? Are starting salaries being set equitably? Are Indigenous employees being given access to training and development? Are they being considered for acting opportunities and promotions? Are they represented in management and executive positions?” he said.

Charles encouraged employers and managers to consider Indigenous recruitment and employment as a career and workforce development strategy that continues into the long term.

In this way, he suggested that businesses start by creating stronger entry pathways from education into employment via traineeships, apprenticeships, cadetships, internships, work experience, and structured entry-level programs.

However, this needs to be backed up with retention and advancement measures, Charles said.

“If an Indigenous employee comes into an organisation, stays in the same position for several years and doesn’t have access to development or progression, then we haven’t really created a career pathway. Every Indigenous employee should be able to understand what their next step could be,” he said.

“That means having proper career conversations, development plans, training opportunities and access to mentors.”

Further, Charles said that organisations should be looking into Indigenous procurement.

“Businesses have enormous purchasing power, and engaging Indigenous-owned businesses can create a broader economic impact. When a large organisation creates a commercial opportunity for an Indigenous business, that can support further employment, skills development, supplier growth and investment back into Indigenous communities,” he said.

As such, elevation doesn’t have to be limited to direct employees.

Charles said: “For me, the biggest shift is moving away from measuring only participation and starting to measure experience and outcomes. It is one thing to say, ‘We employ Indigenous people’. It is another to be able to demonstrate that Indigenous employees are being paid fairly, developed properly, promoted fairly, retained successfully and represented at every level of the organisation.”

Regarding Indigenous-specific events or education, Charles explained that deferring to Indigenous employees creates additional responsibilities that are often not referenced in a position description or remuneration; further, certain measures can feel performative or for compliance purposes rather than impactful and deliberate.

“Businesses need to be careful that being the only Indigenous person, or one of only a few Indigenous people, doesn’t automatically make that employee responsible for all things Indigenous within the organisation,” Charles said.

“One of the things employers can do is share responsibility across the organisation. Non-Indigenous leaders and employees need to build their own cultural capability rather than relying on Indigenous colleagues to carry that responsibility.”

Further, organisations that don’t provide cultural safety, address racism head on, or fail to have clear career progression will likely cause feelings of isolation, fear and doubt among Indigenous employees.

Charles noted the impact of recognising cultural obligations and family responsibilities, and offering flexibility where appropriate, as strong identifiers of culturally safe workplaces.

“Cultural capability means that an organisation has the knowledge, behaviours, leadership and systems to work respectfully with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and to create an environment where Indigenous employees can succeed without having to compromise their identity. But knowledge on its own isn’t enough. It needs to influence behaviour,” he said.

“For leaders, this means knowing what to do when someone makes a racist comment, when an Indigenous employee raises a cultural concern, or simply how to engage respectfully with Indigenous communities and businesses.”

Charles added: “A culturally capable workplace is one where an Indigenous employee can be successful professionally while also being proud of who they are.”

In this way, the pay gap functions as an indicator that signals a much deeper and more complex issue.

Charles said: “I think we also need accountability. Indigenous employment shouldn’t sit solely within a RAP or HR strategy. It should be part of the broader business strategy and reported to senior leadership and boards. And Indigenous people need to be involved in deciding what success looks like. We shouldn’t design strategies for Indigenous people without Indigenous people.

“For me, the ultimate measure is much more human than a single KPI.”

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