ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a critical examination of employment and welfare and their impact on Indigenous health. It examines the conflicting views held about the definition of employment in Indigenous contexts and its ethical implications in a culture where ‘workfulness’ appears to have different meanings. The chapter explores the relationship between Indigenous welfare and health outcomes, and argues that welfare dependency is not the cause but rather a symptom of social, political and economic exclusion and disadvantage. ‘Workfulness’ is proposed as a term to cover not just market employment, but also the carrying out of tasks that are seen as positive for community and/or cultural development. It can thus provide a sense of self-respect and self-esteem similar to that often attributed to market employment in the social determinants of health literature. Understanding the different dimensions of Indigenous welfare and employment is an important element in developing an understanding of the social determinants of Indigenous health.
