NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER - … Discrimination Act 1975 3 ATTACHMENTS – NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER 1 SGS1406-7 Notice of Motion – Cr. Josh Wilson – Fremantle

NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER

Strategic and General Services Committee

Wednesday 11 June 2014, 6.00pm

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SUBJECT PAGE

SGS1406-7 Notice of Motion – Cr. Josh Wilson – Fremantle Indigenous Employment & Reconciliation Compact 1

SGS1406-8 Notice of Motion - Cr Andrew Sullivan - Proposed changes to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 3

ATTACHMENTS – NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER 1

SGS1406-7 Notice of Motion – Cr. Josh Wilson – Fremantle Indigenous Employment & Reconciliation Compact 1

SGS1406-8 Notice of Motion - Cr Andrew Sullivan - Proposed changes to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 4

Notice of Motion Under Separate Cover - Strategic and General Services Committee

11 June 2014

Page 1

SGS1406-7 NOTICE OF MOTION – CR. JOSH WILSON – FREMANTLE INDIGENOUS EMPLOYMENT & RECONCILIATION COMPACT

DataWorks Reference: 097/004 Disclosure of Interest: Nil Meeting Date: 11 June 2014 Previous Item: Nil Decision Making Authority: Council Agenda Attachments: Attachment 1 - City of Fremantle Report ELECTED MEMBER SUMMARY

At the City of Fremantle Council Meeting in December 2010, a set of employment values was adopted that included the following provision: 6. The City will work towards meeting the target of 4% of its employees being Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander across the organisation by 2015-16, and will report on progress towards this target at the end of each financial year. Since adopting that organisational imperative, the City of Fremantle established an Indigenous Employment Action Plan 2011-15 (IEAP) and through its implementation has made considerable progress towards the target. The most recent annual report on the IEAP (see attached) notes that in the financial year 2012/13 the City’s indigenous workforce reached 13 FTEs, or 3.4%, which puts the City in a strong position to achieve its overall target of 4% by 2015/16. The City of Fremantle has a strong and significant indigenous heritage and living culture and since 2009 the Council has sought to strengthen this fundamental part of our community life and identity through a range of measures including the engagement with traditional owners, the wider consideration and use of Noongar names within our civic landscape, and the establishment of the Aboriginal Cultural Centre. It is recognised that a number of Fremantle organisations and employers have been similarly proactive in supporting indigenous inclusion and reconciliation. For example, the Fremantle Football Club has adopted a comprehensive Reconciliation Action Plan, and the Maritime Union of Australia’s Fremantle Branch has negotiated Enterprise Bargaining Agreements with significant indigenous employment conditions. In order to build upon Fremantle’s indigenous culture and further advance the cause of reconciliation in our community, this motion proposes that Council endorse the City’s facilitation of a Fremantle Indigenous Employment and Reconciliation Compact. This Compact would allow relevant organisations in Fremantle to adopt a set of agreed principles when it comes to creating indigenous training and employment opportunities. The principles themselves would guide the member organisations in


11 June 2014

Page 2

their own operational approach to creating opportunities for indigenous Australians and would likely involve a range of different methods, as appropriate to their particular circumstances. Some Compact members may choose to set an employment target, as the City has done, but there will inevitably be a diversity of approaches. While the focus of a such a Compact could easily be greater in scope and more ambitious, this motion has been framed on the basis that by starting with a simple and well-defined objective – as the City has done with its IEAP – there is a greater chance of securing the participation of relevant organisations, and a greater chance of delivering clear benefits in the form of indigenous education/training and employment opportunities. The purpose of the Compact would be to secure a collective commitment to a set of core principles by its members; to enable the sharing of methods and mechanisms designed to increase indigenous training and employment; to streamline and collectively leverage the use of expert indigenous employment placement and training advice and services; and to report, publish, promote and learn from its outcomes. It is hoped that this will be a step towards making Fremantle a place that excels when it comes to indigenous education and employment; a place where people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent are strongly represented in education, traineeships and jobs; and a place where the leadership of the City and similar large organisations helps to create the wider participation in this cause by many local businesses. VOTING AND OTHER SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

Simple Majority Required NOTICE OF MOTION

1. The Mayor inviting relevant Fremantle organisations to participate in the creation of a Fremantle Indigenous Employment & Reconciliation Compact that will comprise a shared set of principles to guide the member organisations in promoting and enabling the creation of training and employment opportunities for Indigenous Australians.

OFFICER COMMENT Nil


11 June 2014

Page 3

SGS1406-8 NOTICE OF MOTION - CR ANDREW SULLIVAN - PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE RACIAL DISCRIMINATION ACT 1975

DataWorks Reference: 097/004 Disclosure of Interest: Nil Meeting Date: 11 June 2014 Previous Item: Nil Decision Making Authority: Council Agenda Attachments: Information paper on proposed changes to

Australia’s racial vilification laws ELECTED MEMBER SUMMARY The Racial Discrimination Act was enacted in 1975 in a show of bipartisanship between Gough Whitlam and Malcolm Fraser. The objective of this law was to protect the community from hate speech and from racial, religious and cultural intolerance. It has been considered good law for almost four decades. Recently, the Federal Government signalled its intention to repeal section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act. The Federal Attorney General, Senator George Brandis, released an exposure draft of amendment to the Racial Discrimination Act. The proposed changes appear to water down the key provisions of the Act in a way that may render the law ineffective. The Human Rights Legal Centre has provided a fact sheet (Attachment 1) that explains Australia’s obligations as a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The HRLC states that the “right to freedom of opinion cannot be subject to any exception or restriction. However, the right to freedom of expression is not absolute. Article 19(3) of the ICCPR recognises that the exercise of the right to freedom of expression may be subject to restrictions in certain circumstances, including where necessary to respect the rights and reputations of others.” “The right to freedom of expression must therefore be balanced against other rights, and in particular against Australia’s obligation to outlaw incitement of racial hatred. Incitement can include urging, stirring up or stimulating, and extends to insults, ridicule or slander of individuals or groups. Article 20 of the ICCPR provides that states must prohibit by law any advocacy of racial hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence.” “Australia is also a party to the International Covenant on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), which requires Australia to take steps to eliminate the promotion and incitement of racial discrimination and hatred. These concepts can also be referred to as racial vilification, which is behaviour that encourages others to hate, disrespect or abuse a person or group of people because of their race.” “Section 18C [currently] makes unlawful certain offensive acts that are done because of race, colour, or national or ethnic origin, and section 18D provides safeguards to ensure that matters of legitimate public interest are not prohibited.”


11 June 2014

Page 4

“The current racial vilification laws provide important protection against racist hate speech. The laws are being interpreted sensibly by the courts and are operating reasonably effectively. The laws generally strike an appropriate balance between the right to freedom of expression and the right to freedom from racial discrimination and vilification. The proposed changes substantially weaken the existing racial vilification protections.” “Of greatest concern is the proposed extremely broad “public discussion” exemption. Most public racial vilification is likely to be covered by the exemption – even if it incites racial hatred or causes racial humiliation or fear of physical harm on the grounds of race. The proposed exemption is so broad, and the new protection is so narrow, that the combined changes would almost completely remove the existing Federal racial vilification protections.” “The radical scope of these proposed changes is confirmed by the commentary on them by the Institute of Public Affairs, which has called for complete removal of Federal racial vilification laws. The Institute welcomed the proposed changes saying they go “95% of the way towards the repeal of 18C”, they “neuter 18C” and they are a “magnificent example of how to repeal legislation without admitting you’re repealing legislation”. If section 18C is effectively repealed from the legislation it may open the door for people to incite racial hatred or cause racial humiliation. Given that local government operates at a very close level with community, the impact on the way we engage with each other could radically change for the worse if the current protections are removed. Furthermore, any resultant harm or division within community could have significant detrimental impacts on the City’s programmes and operations. The Council encourages and facilitates considerable public debate and the proposed changes may significantly weaken our ability to ensure such discussions are held in a respectful and harmonious way. Fremantle is a harmonious multicultural community and Fremantle Council is committed to ensuring that it remains that way. VOTING AND OTHER SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS Simple majority NOTICE OF MOTION That Council:

1. Acknowledges the fundamental importance of section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975;

2. Recognises that section 18C provides protection to individuals from offensive behaviour because of race, colour, national or ethnic origin;

3. Urges all levels of government to combat bigotry at every opportunity; and


11 June 2014

Page 5

4. Authorise the Mayor to write to the Federal Attorney General to request the withdrawal of the Draft Exposure Amendment to the Racial Discrimination Act 1975.

OFFICER COMMENT Nil

ATTACHMENTS – NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER

Strategic and General Services

Committee

Wednesday 11 June 2014, 6.00pm

Attachments - Notice of Motion Under Separate Cover

Strategic and General Services Committee 11 June 2014

Page 1

SGS1406-7 NOTICE OF MOTION – CR. JOSH WILSON – FREMANTLE INDIGENOUS EMPLOYMENT & RECONCILIATION COMPACT

ATTACHMENT 1 CITY OF FREMANTLE REPORT INDIGENOUS EMPLOYMENT ACTION PLAN 2011/15 - UPDATE 31 JULY 2013 Two key actions within the City of Fremantle Indigenous Employment Action Plan 2011-2015 are;

• Review the staff establishment for each Directorate to identify and target positions suitable for indigenous employees and;

• Investigate opportunities to develop specific indigenous traineeships and/or apprenticeships with business unit managers.

These actions are crucial in achieving many of the other actions identified in the plan within the specified timeframes. Addressing the key areas within the Indigenous Employment Action Plan will facilitate an increase in the percentage of indigenous employees and, ultimately, contribute to the strategic imperative outlined in the City of Fremantle Strategic Plan 2010-2015, namely “Strengthening aboriginal relations”. The strategic plan target is to achieve an indigenous workforce of 4% by 2015. Target by 2015 The strategic plan target to achieve an indigenous workforce by 2015 is:

4%

Current Measure A 4% target equates to 15 FTE’s of current workforce, the City as at July 2013 has achieved 3.40% which equates to 13 FTE’s.

3.40%

Target performance for previous years

- 2009/10 = 0.50% - 2010/11 = 1.50% - 2011/12 = 2.05% - 2012/13 = 3.40%

The following is a list of positions that are considered to be the platform of our Indigenous Employment Action Plan 2011-15. These positions may be filled using a



Page 2

combination of traineeship, apprenticeship, cadetships, internship or graduate programs: Corporate Services

• Integrated Patrol Officer (1) • Community Safety and/or Ranger • Finance assistant - traineeship • Records or IT support assistant - traineeship • Risk Management Admin assistant (Occ Health & safety) - traineeship

Planning & Development

• Planning Cadet or Planning Trainee – cadetship preferred • Compliance Technical Officer • Environmental health Officer Traineeship

Technical Services

• Design draftsperson – cadetship preferred • Administration support roles (2)

City Works

• Mechanical apprenticeship/traineeship • Construction and/or maintenance – general skills concreting, paving,

maintenance (5) • Bush & Land Management Traineeship

Community Development

• Administration Officer FCLC • Community development Resource Officer (1) • Aboriginal engagement Officer (1) • Refuge support worker (permanent or casual relief) • Library Assistant (permanent or casual) (1) • Lifeguard / duty manager pool (2) • Arts /exhibition officer

CEO office

• Events officer – hospitality traineeship • Media/Public Relations traineeship

The red highlighted areas currently filled by an indigenous officer. The aim is to choose a number of positions across the organisation that can be targeted and/or advertised as either:

• 50D positions –advert indicates that indigenous applicants are the target to fill these positions



Page 3

• to work with external agencies to fill these positions with indigenous officers within a traineeship/apprentice

• To work with agencies who manage internships, cadetships, graduate

programs

• These positions are not additional to current FTE but through vacancies or reconfiguring the labour within a business unit to support the indigenous employment strategy at the City.

What’s the plan for 2013/14:

• Continue promoting and seek opportunities to fill vacancies or support Fremantle programs via the recruitment process or partnering with external agencies

• Continue to develop traineeship programs targeted in COF list of positions

• seek funding opportunities for traineeship/cadetship opportunities to support

the targeted COF positions

• Continue to promote LG as a career option via the metropolitan schools/university and the benefits as Fremantle the employer – currently using the “Focus your career” booklet which has been sent to all schools in Fremantle and surrounding areas. This may also give opportunities to fill traineeships, cadetships, and develop mentor programs, from a diversity perspective to include youth and the physically challenged

Prepared by Silvana Caranna Manager Human Resources City of Fremantle 9 September 2013



Page 4

SGS1406-8 NOTICE OF MOTION - CR ANDREW SULLIVAN - PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE RACIAL DISCRIMINATION ACT 1975

ATTACHMENT 1



Page 5



Page 6



Page 7



Page 8



Page 9



Page 10



Page 11



Page 12



Page 13



Page 14



Page 15



Page 16



Page 17



Page 18



Page 19



Page 20



Page 21

Documents

NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER - … Discrimination Act 1975 3 ATTACHMENTS – NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER SEPARATE COVER 1 SGS1406-7 Notice of Motion – Cr. Josh Wilson – Fremantle