Meet Australian Aborigines

[Br.IanVonTurpie]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14851801/Melbourne-street-cleaner-sacked-objecting-Acknowledgement-Country.html

A street cleaner who won an unfair dismissal case after being sacked for objecting to an Acknowledgement of Country had never completed mandatory racism modules for the council because he was on leave playing golf at the time

Shaun Turner was dismissed by the Darebin City Council in Melbourne's inner north after he questioned why the ceremony was being performed at his weekly meeting.

'If you need to be thanking anyone, it's the people who have worn the uniform and fought for our country to keep us free,' he said.

The Fair Work Commission's Deputy President Richard Clancy found Mr Turner's statements were not delivered in the manner or tone alleged by the council.

The decision from Mr Clancy included yet another revealing detail.

The council's case showed Mr Turner had completed required online training modules, including those on racial discrimination, so he should have known not to speak out about the conducting of the Aboriginal ceremony.

But Mr Turner disputed this, saying he was on leave playing golf when the training  took place.

Instead, his team leader allegedly completed the modules for him after becoming 'annoyed' by repeated notifications sent to him saying they had not been completed.

The council maintained that the 'Record of Learning Report', showing Mr Turner had done the modules, could only have been generated if his private credentials were entered at the specific times and dates they were completed.

However Mr Turner told the commission 'he could not have completed these e-courses... because he did not have access to a computer while on leave', but his team leader knew his password and could have signed on under his name.

Workplace legal expert Andrew Stewart slammed the council's behaviour as a 'case study in how not to go about a dismissal'. 

'The council really should have been aware that this was likely to be pursued and should have been more careful about the way they went through the process,' Mr Stewart told The Australian.

'But clearly the commission wasn't satisfied that they even reached the point of establishing a valid reason for dismissal, let alone went about the dismissal in a fair way.

Darebin CEO Michael Tudball said on Thursday that the city council 'respects the court process and authority of the Fair Work Commission'.

'The case put forward by Council and our representative is outlined in the decision published on the Fair Work Commission website.

'Any outcomes on reinstatement or resolution of this matter are subject to a further meeting with the parties involved at the Fair Work Commission.'

'We respect that this is the right place to have discussions about next steps on this matter.

It was during the toolbox meeting on April 17, 2024, that Mr Turner reportedly said people should be thanking veterans rather than performing the Acknowledgement.

'We respect that this is the right place to have discussions about next steps on this matter,' he said.

It was during the toolbox meeting on April 17, 2024, that Mr Turner reportedly said people should be thanking veterans rather than performing the Acknowledgement.

'It's getting out of hand and people are losing it, it is now being done at the opening of a postage stamp,' he said.

Council officers investigated Mr Turner's alleged 'serious misconduct', but he doubled down.

'As far as I know half of us are born here, I don't need to be welcomed to my own country. If people don't want to be there, they can leave,' Mr Turner told council officers.

Mr Turner also told officers that an Acknowledgement of Country should be reserved for more formal or international occasions.

At another meeting, Council Chief People Officer Yvette Fuller told Mr Turner that there was a firm expectation for an Acknowledgement of Country to precede all formal meetings.

'Why didn't we do it in this meeting then?' Mr Turner hit back.

'I won't disrupt (the ceremony) but I want to be asked if I would like ... the courtesy to step outside,' he replied.

In his termination letter, Darebin City Council alleged during the May 21, 2024 meeting that Mr Turner had said 'the Acknowledgement of Country is not necessary'.

The council further alleged Mr Turner said Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders 'do not deserve an acknowledgement at the start of meetings'.

But Mr Clancy was not persuaded Mr Turner made either of those broad statements.

'I am satisfied, however, that Mr Turner made a comment to the effect that if anyone was to be acknowledged or thanked at a toolbox meeting, it should be the servicemen and women who had fought for this country (i.e. Australia),' he said.

'But I do not consider that expressing such an opinion constitutes a valid reason for dismissal.'

In his testimony, Mr Turner claimed he was 'being made out to be a racist'.

'I've got to say that I was brought up in Broadmeadows. I come from a family of eight. My best friends out at Broadmeadows happen to be Aboriginal [people], one of them marrying my sister,' he said.

'I have a niece and great-niece and nephews who are all Aboriginal.

The Fair Work Commission will hold a subsequent hearing to consider Mr Turner's request for reinstatement and determine the remedy for the unfair dismissal

[Br.IanVonTurpie]

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14826955/indigenous-yarning-room-bowral-hospital.html

A hospital in New South Wales is set to introduce a  'yarning room' designed to be a culturally 'safe space' for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients and families

A White Interloper Wanders into the Aboriginal Safe Space

The initiative, first reported by radio host Ben Fordham on 2GB, has been confirmed by NSW Health, which says Bowral Hospital is considering the idea to strengthen engagement with Indigenous communities.

While an estimated cost of $250,000 has been reported, NSW Health has not confirmed the final price tag.

Fordham slammed the decision, saying that it was not a priority for NSW Health given data last week showed wait times for surgery had skyrocketed.

'Is this the kind of thing we should be spending money on, when elective surgery wait times are blowing out?' Fordham said.

'We might have our priorities mixed up just a little'

Recent data showed there were 100,678 patients on the statewide waiting list - up 7.34 per cent, which was close to Covid lockdown levels when elective surgeries were paused.

Yarning circles are a traditional practice used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to learn, share stories, build respectful relationships, and pass on cultural knowledge.

They are commonly used in health, education, and community settings.

A 2024 report by the Australian Government Department of Health, authored by Ngunnawal woman Cas Nest, highlights their role in delivering culturally safe healthcare.

'Yarning circles are a traditional and deeply respected way for First Nations people to communicate, learn, and maintain connection to culture,' Nest writes.

According to the report, yarning circles provide a space where participants sit in a circle to ensure equality, encourage deep listening, and foster mutual respect.

'Yarning circles allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to be at the centre of conversations that affect them,' Nest states.

They need a "safe space" because White people mustn't be safe to be around? They get a room for themselves only! Imagine the conversations and chimp outs going on in that room?!

The Ambulances are doing it hard and they want to put money into this "Ape Cage"?!