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Under the Access and Equity Strategy, government agencies work to improve the way in which their programs and services respond to Australia’s cultural, religious and linguistic diversity. The strategy reflects the government’s recognition that ‘while services may be universally applicable, they may not be equally accessible’.4 It also acknowledges the ‘right of all Australians to equality of treatment and opportunity and the removal of barriers of race, ethnicity, culture, religion, language, gender or place of birth’5 and the need for all government agencies to work together to overcome these barriers.
The concept of access and equity has evolved in tandem with changes in Australia’s demographic profile and migrant intake and so too have government programs and services. New issues have emerged. For example, as Australia’s earlier migrants age, they can face increasing difficulty with communication. Language skills, especially for those who never attained a great degree of facility in their second language, tend to deteriorate with age.
A wide variety of strategies are now employed by government agencies to help clients overcome cultural and linguistic barriers to services and support their participation in Australian society.
For example, data collection and collation, consultations, and research and analysis of emerging issues and trends are being used to help inform and improve service delivery.
The use of translation and interpreting services, encouraging bilingual and multilingual staff to use their skills, the use of plain English and appropriate channels of communication to disseminate information are helping to address language barriers.
Agencies are now more commonly training staff in cross-cultural and diversity issues and using strategies that test candidates’ understanding, interest and experience in these fields in recruitment processes.
Outreach services, tailored programs, workshops and forums have taken services out to clients in remote areas and provided information and education for specific groups such as Humanitarian Program entrants.
Eliciting feedback from clients, service providers and advocates contributes to the effectiveness of services and programs. Surveys, formal complaints handling procedures and internal review mechanisms help to meet agencies’ accountability requirements.
Collaboration and information sharing between agencies is also important because, as the Commonwealth Ombudsman noted, ‘the complaints that people have against government require individual attention but are rarely unique’.
This report demonstrates that there is a commitment among Australian Government agencies to the principles of access and equity. They are taking their responsibilities seriously, monitoring and adjusting service delivery, and developing new approaches and programs to meet the needs of Australia’s diverse population.
As would be expected, those agencies dealing directly with large numbers of clients, such as Centrelink and the Australian Taxation Office, are at the forefront of innovation in service development and delivery. But some smaller agencies and cultural institutions have also developed fresh, new ways to engage and include more and more members of Australia’s diverse and changing demographic.
The three profiles which follow, and those that appear throughout this report, demonstrate the variety and scope of the strategies now being employed at every level of government, as well as in business and community organisations.
- Making Multicultural Australia Access and Equity: Evaluation Summary, 1992
- National Agenda for a Multicultural Australia, 1989
