The great majority of Aboriginal people whose deaths were investigated by this Royal Commission were unemployed at the time of their detention.
Unemployment rates are disproportionately high in the Aboriginal community.
While some Aboriginal people were attracted to working for Europeans by the lure of tobacco, tea and rations, many were forced into exploitative labour arrangements because they had lost control over their traditional subsistence economy. A large proportion of Aboriginal people continued to support themselves independently in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. In Victoria, Queensland and later in Western Australia, Aboriginal people were forced to move onto reserves, and to work for government authorities. Some missions tried to prevent outside employment. Residences near towns, where work was available, were considered untidy so greater controls applied to these people.