Tennant Creek elders describe floggings, assaults in NT stolen wages class action

A court has heard Indigenous children were working for rations ‘as soon as we could walk’, as evidence preservation hearings in the NT stolen wages class action continue in Tennant Creek.

Indigenous elders have described working for rations from “as soon as we could walk” while being subject to regular floggings, as evidence preservation hearings in the Northern Territory stolen wages class action continues in Tennant Creek.

Peter Parlow, one of 25 witnesses set to give evidence during the hearings that commenced in Alice Springs last Monday, told the court he began to work every weekend at the age of eight or nine doing stock work and training horses.

Mr Parlow said most kids began working “as soon as we could walk” to be able to eat.

“Our parents weren’t allowed to feed us, so we had to work for our feed,” he said.

“And old people – we wasn’t allowed to depend on old people.”

He said if he didn’t start working he would “probably get a flogging”, with his family too “scared” to intervene.

Evidence preservation hearings finished in Tennant Creek on Friday, following two days of evidence in Alice Springs. Picture: (A) manda Parkinson

At 10-years-old Mr Parlow said he began to work “from daylight till dark” every day, with rare holidays for ceremony time.

“The only time we seen a holiday was bush camp, they call it, the walkabout – ceremony time,” he said.

“That’s the only time.

“We couldn’t go to town.

“Aboriginal people wasn’t allowed in town for holiday, any time, in them days, anyway.”

He said he never saw money for his work as a child, but did get rations and was able to receive clothes and boots from the store on a “book-up”.

The court heard other recounts from women and men taken away from their families and being forced to work before and after school or else they would receive a “flogging”.

Federal Court Justice Bernard Murphy will preside over the Evidence Preservation Hearings. (AAP Image/Dan Himbrechts)

One woman described working for an employer who she said “tried to get into bed with me” at the age of 13.

Joint head of class actions Vicky Antzoulatos, of Shine Lawyers which has taken on the class action, said the preservation hearings would be “crucial” in achieving justice.

“Group members are frail, ageing and vulnerable, and given how long class actions can take, capturing evidence while the Indigenous Elders are still alive is crucial on our journey to achieving justice for these group members,” she said.

Shine Lawyers’ joint head of class actions Vicky Antzoulatos said in addition to compensation, those impacted deserve an apology and recognition of the trauma they endured. Picture: Shine Lawyers Facebook.

“The government cannot reverse the damage done, but it can work at stopping cycles of underprivilege by compensating these survivors and their relatives.”

The hearings will move on to Katherine and the Tiwi Islands this week.

The class action was filed to the Federal Court of Australia in 2021 following the success of a similar lawsuit in Queensland.

The class action concerns Indigenous Australians who worked in the Territory who’s wages were either withheld or not paid as a result of wage control laws between 1933 and 1971.

Shine’s previous head of class actions Jan Saddler, who has since left the company, told the NT News in 2019 more than 2200 Indigenous Territorians who may have worked during the relevant period could be owed more than $100,000 each.