A two day meeting of Indigenous unionists from across the country will convene in Melbourne tomorrow.
The conference implements pat of the ACTU’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples policy determined at the ACTU Congress last year.
Around 70 participants from a range of unions will consider issues that include employment, partnerships, social justice, CDEP, developing indigenous representation and voice within unions and other matters.
Following a welcome to country by Wurrunjerri elder Joy Murphy, ACTU President Sharan Burrow will open the conference.
” At last years ACTU Congress unions acknowledged that from the time of colonial invasion Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have been dispossessed, oppressed, and systematically denied both their fundamental rights and identity. We also acknowledged our own complicity in that at certain times.
This was important to accept, and now enables us to move forward together to work to achieve an improvement for Indigenous people as unionists and as and integral, distinct, and an incredibly vital part of Australian society.” said Sharan Burrow.
The media is welcome to attend the opening of the conference.
Date: Thursday 20 September 2001
Time: 9.15 am
Location: Education Unions House
120 Clarendon St
South Melbourne
