About the House November 200542

Priscilla Collins remembers the firsttime she saw an Aboriginal personworking in a bank and the impact ithad on her. “For me, it was a hugething,” said Ms Collins, “When

young [Aboriginal] kids see an Aboriginalperson working, they say: ‘If they can do it,we can do it’.”

Ms Collins, who is the Chief ExecutiveOfficer of the Central Australian AboriginalMedia Association (CAAMA), was givingevidence in Alice Springs to an inquiry intoIndigenous employment. The inquiry isbeing conducted by the House ofRepresentatives Aboriginal and Torres StraitIslander Affairs Committee.

Ms Collins told committee members thatCAAMA is the largest Indigenous mediaorganisation in Australia, with its own recordlabel, a film and television production house,and a television station. Established 25 yearsago to give Aboriginal people a voice in themedia, CAAMA now employs 36 people,mostly Aborigines, and has been hailed as oneof the success stories in Indigenousemployment.

Success stories in

Indigenous employment

provide benefits that reach

far beyond the individual. Story: Peter Cotton

Job satisfaction

Left to right: Don Freeman, managing director of the Tjapukai

Aboriginal Cultural Park, with two of the performers, Steven

Simon and Raymond Lafragua-Creek. Photo: Ann Rogers,

Newspix; Staff of the Central Australian Aboriginal Media

Association (CAAMA): radio presenter Molly, film crew on

location in the Northern Territory, and cameraman

Warwick Thornton.

About the House November 2005 43

Continued page 44

As part of its inquiry intoIndigenous employment issues, theAboriginal and Torres Strait IslanderAffairs Committee has been asked toexamine “positive factors andexamples amongst Indigenouscommunities and individuals whichhave improved employmentoutcomes in both the public andprivate sectors”. The committee is torecommend to the government waysthis can inform future policydevelopment, and to assess whatsignificant factors have contributedto those positive outcomes identified,including what contributionpractical reconciliation has made.

Committee Chair, Barry Wakelin,the Member for Grey (SA), said thecommittee’s focus on positiveoutcomes in Indigenous employmentwas the right approach.

“There’s probably as much tolearn from those employmentinitiatives that fail Indigenouspeople,” he said, “but there seems tobe a fair repeat factor in the failuresand I think we’ll learn more from thepositives, where it’s working, ratherthan where it hasn’t.”

The Committee’s Deputy Chair,the Member for Fremantle (WA),

Dr Carmen Lawrence, agreed it wasbest for the committee to look atpositive outcomes in Indigenousemployment.

Dr Lawrence said this wasparticularly true given that policymakers still couldn’t adequatelydefine what programs actuallyimproved the employment prospectsof Indigenous Australians.

“With that in mind, [thecommittee] has turned the usualapproach on its head and gonelooking for examples of success,” saidDr Lawrence. “Employmentinitiatives that have failed Indigenouspeople have been well documented—there are many places where you canfind what doesn’t work.

“We’re trying to find positiveexamples, but not so they can beapplied everywhere—one of thelessons to be learned is that programshave to be tailored to the uniquecircumstances of each community andgroup you’re dealing with. There’s no‘one size fits all’.

“And we won’t ignore materialabout what doesn’t work, particularlywhen it comes to the behaviour ofgovernments. Rather we’re looking tosee if we can assist communities by

providing them with examples ofapproaches and programs that seemto be working.”

Another enterprise to giveevidence to the inquiry was the AliceSprings Desert Park, which has run avery successful Indigenousemployment program for 10 years.

Twenty two per cent of the park’sstaff are local Aboriginal people and,in a submission to the committee,Guide Manager Jodie Clarkson saidthe park was enriched by itsAboriginal employees, and thoseemployees were enriched byemployment at the park.

“The success of the program hasbuilt self esteem within (Indigenousemployees) which has had a flow on effect to their families andcommunity,” said Ms Clarkson.

Indigenous employees at thepark agree. “The tourist industry is apretty good industry to be involvedin,” said Vincent Forrester, a guide atthe park. “I can have 50 people atone talk. I can send 99.9 per cent ofthem away with smiles on their faces.I know I have done a good job. I getjob satisfaction here every day,because it is a captive audience. I cando my thing. I can start educating

About the House November 200544

“Nothing gives young people morepride than earning a wage.”

Australians about their land, where theycome from and what it means.

“Nothing gives young people morepride than earning an award wage—not sit-down money, not work for thedole, but award wage positions.”

Another guide, Kylie Bloomfield,said being a park ranger serves as a goodrole model within the community.“When kids see you down the street,they’re singing out ‘ranger’ this,‘ranger’ that especially when you go tothe schools.”

In her submission, Ms Clarksonsaid Desert Park invested extra timeand effort in the process of recruitingIndigenous employees. This includedsending descriptions of vacantpositions to an extensive email list oflocal Aboriginal organisations, familiesand individuals.

Ms Clarkson said that when a jobcame up at the park, traditionalowners, local Aboriginal families andAboriginal staff members were asked toinform their family networks. The parkdoesn’t advertise positions inDecember or January because manylocal Aboriginal people are involved inceremonies at that time of year.

Desert Park has developed auniquely sensitive approach to shortlisting and interviewing Indigenouscandidates for the jobs it offers.According to Jodie Clarkson, if anIndigenous applicant doesn’t meetselection criteria for a job at the park,they’re contacted for a chat to assesswhether their verbal skills are betterthan their written communication. Ifit’s then felt that the applicant met theselection criteria, they may be assistedto modify their application prior to aninterview.

Job interviews at the park areconducted by a three person panel,including one Aboriginal who is eithera staff member or a traditional owner.The interviews are conducted outsidein a quiet, open area, or inside in aplace with plenty of natural light.

“The most important thing weneed to assess is the applicant’s interestin and commitment to the position,”said Ms Clarkson. “Individuals may beunder pressure from families [to get a

job]. This is not a recipe for success forthat individual, their family or the park.”

The Desert Park approach toIndigenous employment ensures thatthe best candidate gets the job, andonce an Indigenous person isemployed, every effort is made toretain them. All park staff undertakecross-cultural, Arrernte language andanti-discrimination training, and bushknowledge and skills are given equalstatus to western scientific knowledgeat the park.

Jodie Clarkson said that one of thebiggest employment challenges thepark faced was overcoming problems ofreliability and punctuality. “If you havegrown up in a family where neitherparent has had a job,” she said, “a workethic can be a new concept.

“We ensure that new startersunderstand that the tourism industryworks by the clock and that being latewill upset your workmates and makethe park look bad. A watch is part ofour uniform and we provide one wherenecessary.

“Sometimes people think that ifthey are late or don’t turn up, they’ll getinto trouble or lose their job and [theytherefore] feel ashamed to call and letus know. We help them understandthat they are allowed to be sick. We justneed to know so that we can plan forit.”

Ms Clarkson said living andworking within two cultures was amajor challenge and it was sometimesnecessary to help staff step between thedemands of Western and Aboriginalculture. For instance, Aboriginal staffwho are traditional owners or oldermen are sometimes ‘culturally superior’to some other Aboriginal staff, andthey may try to inappropriatelydelegate tasks where the ‘target’ or theirdelegating may feel culturally obligedto obey.

“We have also had to manage theimplications of families involved inconflict [payback] in the workplace,”said Ms Clarkson. “We soughtguidance from the involved parties andput them on opposite shifts untilthings settled down.

“We help staff understand whyvisitors ask ignorant, inappropriate andculturally offensive questions,” shesaid. “And we collectively develop non-defensive answers to these questions.”

Committee Deputy Chair, Dr Lawrence, said she was hopeful theinquiry into Indigenous employmentcould highlight half a dozen successstories, such as Desert Park andCAAMA. However Dr Lawrence saidthat once you began to examineIndigenous employment initiatives,you were inevitably drawn into thequestion of Indigenous education,which was often linked to health.

“The joined-up nature of theseproblems is illustrated in the successfulprograms because they don’t just dealwith getting people to work on aparticular day,” says Dr Lawrence.“They are much broader in scope.”

Asked why the committee hadbeen asked to assess the particularcontribution of ‘practical’ reconciliationto positive employment outcomes forIndigenous people, Committee ChairBarry Wakelin said the substance ofpractical reconciliation was moreimportant than symbolism.

“Symbolic issues are part of theback drop, but the substance and thereality and how it makes a difference toan individual’s life is always going towin the day with me,” said Mr Wakelin. “The fundamentals mustprevail. That is, it’s important toovercome disadvantage, to have aneducation, to live in a house wherepeople get a decent night’s sleep, tohave a decent diet and keep away fromdrug abuse.

“These things are more thansymbolic and you can only do so muchtalking yourself up. What we’re aboutis looking at how people actually do it.”

One company that’s ‘doing it’ forIndigenous employment is Rio Tinto,particularly at its Argyle Diamondssubsidiary in Western Australia’sKimberley region.

In the year 2000, ArgyleDiamonds decided to recruit moreworkers from the Kimberley rather

Continued from page 43

Hugh Woodbury, ranger at the Alice Springs Desert Park.

About the House November 2005 45

Living and working within twocultures was a major challenge.

than persist with a ‘fly in-fly out’workforce based in Perth. Initially, it seta target of 30 per cent local employmentby 2005, with a minimum of half ofthis—15 per cent of the workforce—tobe Aboriginal people. At the time, lessthan 5 per cent of the Argyle workforcewas Aboriginal.

Argyle overhauled its interview andrecruitment process to ensure that itprovided a culturally appropriate, butstill robust assessment, of candidates’employability. It instigated a four dayassessment program to give candidatesand their potential employers the

opportunity to work side by side andengage in problem solving and teambuilding exercises.

Argyle has now surpassed its 15 percent target for Indigenous employmentwith local Aborigines now making up23 per cent of its workforce. And ithopes that figure will reach 40 per centby 2010.

Barry Wakelin says sections ofAustralia’s corporate sector have some oftheir best people helping them engage

with the Aboriginal community.“Theywant to bring these people forward andrespect them,” says Mr Wakelin. “Butit’s not all altruistic. In fact, in manycases it’s engagement with a commercialpurpose.

“These companies know that youhave to work in the spirit of goodwill toachieve your commercial objectives andwe’ve now got a corporate mindset thatcan see genuine commercial progresslinked with good outcomes.”

At its Cairns hearings, the committeeheard of a brilliant outcome forIndigenous employment in evidencefrom the Tjapukai Aboriginal CulturalPark. Tjapukai Park is one of Australia’slargest and most successful touristattractions. It’s also Australian tourism’slargest employer of Aboriginal people.

The park began life in thebasement of a shopping centre in thesmall village of Kuranda near Cairns in1987. It had seven Aboriginal employeesat the time. All of them were performers.

Today, the 25-acre TjapukaiAboriginal Cultural Park is a $10million facility. It employs 100 people,85 of them Aborigines, and produces40 shows and presentations a day.Aboriginal employees work in all areasof the park, including technical andmanagement, customer service,reservations, retail, food and beverage,and administration.

The park is built on land owned bylocal Indigenous people, who also owna majority shareholding in theattraction. The rest of the shares areowned by Indigenous BusinessAustralia and a number of non-Indigenous investors.

Tjapukai’s Marketing Director,Judy Freeman, told the committee thatsince 1987 the park had contributedalmost $30 million to the Aboriginalcommunity in profits, royalties, wagesand the purchase of arts and artefacts.In recognition of that achievement, thepark recently was awarded theQueensland Premier’s ReconciliationAward for Business.

The park portrays all aspects of theTjapukai tribe, from its dreamtimelegends through to its life incontemporary Australia. Ms Freemansaid the park had sparked cultural andlanguage renewal in local Indigenouspeople, especially among the secondgeneration of Tjapukai employees whowere now entering the park work force.

“These children of the founders ofTjapukai have grown up with anunderstanding that commitment toexcellence and reliable performancelead the way to success in the modernworld,” said Ms Freeman.

“Many members of the communitywho have worked as performers atTjapukai have travelled the world,performing in 20 countries over 25international tours,” she said. “Thesetravellers returned home with anexpanded world view which haschanged how this community sees itselfand its place in the world.”

The submissions and transcripts of publichearings for the Indigenous employmentinquiry are available atwww.aph.gov.au/house/committee/atsiaor email atsia.reps@aph.gov.au or phone(02) 6277 4559.

CAAMA film crew.

Performance at the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park. Photo: Newspix