Bix

Two jobs currently being advertised in Cairns:

Apprentice Fitter & Turner (Identified Position - Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander People)

Trainee Administration Officer - 12 Month Term (Identified Position - Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander People)

Is this racist?

eddie007

Positive discrimination....

Not too sure I agree with it... You can't level an uneven playing field without doing a heck of a lot of ground work and preparation with heavy machinary...

Feels patronising, like the old school tie in Reverse... Best applicant for the post should be the rule....

Turban Explorer

It's positive discrimination. When I did my brief stint in Indigenous rights we used to get the odd trainee secretary from Arukun, Hope Vale or Coen (our communities). Invariably they were about 18, sullen and never stopped testing/facebooking (maybe even BEing). We sacked white receptionists to open the jobs up if there was a candidate. Their arrival would be celebrated with cakes, fizzy drinks etc

Bit of an odd phenomenon but as a race they've had a raw deal and need supporting into the work force.

eddie007

Cant believ you sacked receptionists to make way for... That truely shocks me... Positive discrimination to fill a vacant position is ONE thing... But christ, no wonder you get racial tensions in communities where people loose their jobs coz of the colour of their skin or their "ethnicity" is wrong.. Whichever way that goes.....

Broad Shoulders

But you could argue that this type of drastic measure is a product of the decades of inequalitative treatment. Now we are overcompensating for it. It will obviously be disguised as a measure to integrate the indiginous people more into everyday jobs, but the reality is that it is likely to be more led by politics and guilt.

Either way, is it such a bad thing that they are now being given an advantage after the people they are now replacing were given decades of preferential treatment which has got them to this point?

ukecadet

Tricky one isn't it.Personally I can live with it.I had a mate who used to get abstudy which was at a higher rate than the austudy that I was receiving.
She always seemed a bit embarrassed about it.
Things like this seem to drive a wedge and can cause unnecessary and avoidable resentment.

eddie007

Sorry, not you personally... As an organisation....

Turban Explorer

I really don't know which way I swing. Obviously sacking white staff is ridiculously bad but pretty much every aspect of human resources was - there was a great deal of anti-white racism. First time I've experienced it!

It could often be so difficult to get anyone from these very dysfunctional communities into gainful employment it was considered a great achievement. That way positive role models are gradually developed who, when they return home, re-establish social norms - at least that's the theory. It's a uphill struggle. There was a case of 10 twenty something blokes from Coen who were cajoled into abattoir work in SA somewhere for 10 weeks - accommodation, meals and transport provided. 8 had gone AWOL by week 2...

sheene

Would a Christian be sacked in Germany to make way for someone with Jewish beliefs? The Jews had a pretty raw deal.

Is it not time to move on? I fear for the future until the indigenous people let go of the past - it is like an anchor.

Broad Shoulders

Yes, to be clear, that I do not agree with.

That makes great sense, but as you say in theory

sheene

I hear it so often - what exactly is 'reverse racism' ? Surely racism is racism, regardless of who the protagonist and victims are?

Broad Shoulders

But meanwhile in everyday life they are often treated as second class citizens.

Therefore how can they possibly let go of the past if it is still happening in the present?

The aboriginal treatment issue is by no means over. Just because K Rudd said "sorry" doesn't mean anything has actually changed. What has actually improved for the aboriginal people since that day 4 years ago?

sheene

Having lived and worked with the indigenous people, I just didn't see the inequality, but you certainly heard about it.

I think there might be more sympathy if there was more balance. Let's see more news stories about indigenous people helping the poorer white kids?

Turban Explorer

I imagine the job adverts posted by Bix are Cairns based. It has a high Indigenous population (literally and numerically) and is the hub for employment for the Cape York communities. There is a massive amount of inequality in every aspect of life outcomes.

sheene

But that is not simply down to race. Poor people tend to have less chances, as do those with medical problems, mental issues, low IQ, those who make wrong 'choices' - the list is endless. The world is not flat, it is a very uneven playing field. Wherever we are placed in the spectrum ,there are always people who are worse off, and those who are better off. If we all spent our time looking over our shoulders at others, we would never achieve anything. Before working with the indigenous people I had empathy, and now I am left with sympathy. Empathy is the healthy option.