A cultural framework to understand young Maltese AustraliansAuthor: Carmen Calleya-Capp Young people in our society are experiencing unemployment, educational pressures, concerns about health, finance, violence and homelessness. Young Maltese Australians and their families are not immune from these issues, and we are here today to learn and develop strategies to assist young people and their families to deal with these issues. The aim of this talk is to provide an insight into the Maltese culture and the way this impacts on the employment opportunities for young Maltese Australians. Maltese people have been emigrating to Australia for close to 150 years. In Victoria, the community is one of the more established ethnic groups. The Maltese in Victoria in common with a number of other post war immigrant groups, is now an ageing community. The MalteseCommunity Council of Victoria provides a comprehensive welfare service with a focus on aged care programs. Post war immigration from Malta was predominantly working class. Many Maltese were successful in gaining employment rather quickly as tradesmen and in the dockyards. Gaining employment was perceived as easy for the Maltese as they spoke English, though the English spoken by the Maltese had its limitations. The family, religion, the Maltese language and links with Malta are cultural values that are maintained by Maltese Australians. While I am providing a view of Maltese culture, I think it is important to remember that culture is not static and that for some young Maltese Australians culture provides one of their reference points for making sense of their own experiences and identity. This can mean that young people are living and growing up with two cultures. There are high rates of intermarriage between Maltese and other Australians. The family is the most important institution. The family provides care, love, support and, in many cases, young Maltese will be living at home until they marry. The family home is usually a home for grandparents and the home itself is well maintained. The Maltese community has high rates of home ownership. In most cases, young Maltese Australians are educated at Catholic schools, as religion has always had a strong influence on their parents' lives. A young person's sense of values are influenced by their parents, extended family, religion, their friends and, of course, the Australian way of life. Young Maltese Australians have seen their parents and their extended family work very hard not only to own their homes but to provide a good secure life for their loved ones. This means that most young Maltese Australians have a strong sense of values and a very good work ethic. Maltese parents have a strong desire to see their children achieve at school and obtain good jobs. These expectations can sometimes lead to conflict in the family Young Maltese Australians have seen the effects of retrenchment on their parents and how this impacts on the quality of family life. A young Maltese Australian I spoke with found it difficult to accept that after 25 years of loyal service to an employer and with only 3 days sick leave taken his father was retrenched. A young Maltese Australian woman told me that she gets very depressed that only casual or part time work is available. Stable employment, loyalty to and from an employer, and the security of 'having a good job' are values that are embraced by the family, young Maltese Australians and the Maltese community more generally. Young Maltese Australians are also very concerned about the availability of jobs even when they have obtained tertiary qualifications. A group of young Maltese Australians I met told me that careers counselling no longer is available at their schools due to budget cuts, and they and their parents are frustrated as to where to seek careers advice. Early school leavers often do not realise that jobs are very difficult to come by and that the range and quality of employment is not available to them. A positive aspect of leaving school early has been that young Maltese Australians enter vocational training programs and undertake apprenticeships. We should also note that decisions are usually discussed within the family and therefore for all those educators here today you must maintain the provision of career counselling. Decisions regarding a young person's dreams or ambitions should always be taken seriously and encouragement and practical advice given. It is sometimes difficult to convince young Maltese Australians to continue with their education. A long-standing hidden educational problem affecting young Maltese Australians is the tendency to speak English well whilst, experiencing difficulties when expressing themselves in writing. Whilst respecting the decision to leave school, parents should find out the reasons for leaving. Today provides the opportunity for all of us to identify how we can work together to provide career information, vocational guidance and early intervention. Centrelink aims to provide young people between the ages of 16 to 24 with quality services by: - providing vocational and employment counselling to disadvantaged young people and referring young people with multiple barriers to the Occupational Psychologist for formal counselling;
- preparing and giving advice to young people on the preparation of their resumes and job applications, and assisting young people in planning and implementing a jobsearch strategy;
These are some services that are available, but what is most relevant for us today is that Centrelink is committed to working in partnership with the broader community, government and non-government agencies and ethnic communities so that we can provide the best assistance to Centrelink customers. When young Maltese Australians, or for that matter any young people, are looking for employment we should remember to: - be supportive, positive and provide realistic encouragement;
- show genuine interest in their efforts;
- if possible, help with the preparation of resumes.
I would like to conclude by saying that to understand the culture of young Maltese Australians is important, but what is more important is never to stereotype but to be willing to learn about young persons and their unique circumstances and personal characteristics. Source: Maltese Background Youth - Editors Cauchi M, Borland H, Adams R, 1999, [Europe Australia Institute], p 52
  
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