CAPABILITY
It is important for ABS staff to have the right cultural competency skills to enable them to effectively engage with Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse population. This will ensure the ABS upholds its values of maintaining the trust of providers and access for all.
Minimum Obligations:
4.1 Cultural Competency - Agency to have training and development measures to equip staff with cultural competency skills.
4.2 Research and data - Agency to collect ethnicity data on the culturally and linguistically diverse groups with which the agency engages and to which it delivers services directly or indirectly.
 | Action | Accountability | Timeline | Target |
| 4.1 | 4.1.1 Undertake a training needs analysis on cultural competency skills and address any gaps. | Director, Workforce Strategies Section | By October 2014 | Recommendations of analysis are implemented or scheduled for implementation. |
4.1.2 Staff are expected to undertake the APS-wide cultural competency eLearning course (once available).
Staff in the following areas undertake training within three months of release:
· National Information and Referral Service
· Provider Contact Unit
· Office of the Statistician and External Engagement
· Population Survey Operations
· National Migrant Statistics Unit
· Senior Executive Service
New staff undertake training within six months of release.
All other staff undertake training within 12 months of release. | Resource Centre Heads | By June 2015 | 95% of ABS staff complete the eLearning module within expected timeframes. |
| 4.1.3 Continue to develop an asset-based approach (e.g. cross cultural training, register of staff who speak another language and secondments to other statistical organisations) to enable staff development and support for Asia and the Pacific Region, as part of the ABS International Relations Strategy. | Director, International Relations and Regional Statistical Development Section | By June 2015 | ABS has capable staff to support Asia and the Pacific Region in relation to statistical matters. |
| 4.2 | 4.2.1 Continue to collect and disseminate ethnicity data on culturally and linguistically diverse groups through Census and Household survey outputs. | Australian Statistician | From July 2013 | Planned statistical releases occur on schedule, as per ABS policies. |
| 4.2.2 Continue to improve cultural and linguistic survey and administrative data through actions such as:
· Continuing the partnership with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) on data development, standards and dissemination;
· Working closely with DIAC in dissemination and/or updating of the ABS’s Standards for Statistics on Cultural and Linguistic Diversity; and
· Investigating the integration of relevant culturally and linguistically diverse datasets to expand the range of data about culturally and linguistically diverse communities. | Director, National Migrant Statistics Unit | June 2015 | Appropriate data products are expanded and accessible to, and shared with, other agencies.
Note: This is in accordance with Recommendation 7 of the Access and Equity Inquiry and the government’s response. |
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