James Cook University accused of ‘doing nothing’ in response to bully claim

A senior academic says James Cook Uni did ‘basically nothing’ after a deputy vice-chancellor allegedly threatened to ‘spear’ her.

JCU Deputy Vice Chancellor of Indigenous Education and Strategy, Professor Martin Nakata.

A senior academic staffer has accused James Cook University of “basically doing nothing” after she complained that the head of the Indigenous Education and Research Centre had allegedly threatened to “spear” her if she didn’t increase enrolment.

The woman alleges Martin Nakata, the Townsville-based deputy vice-chancellor of Indigenous Education and Strategy, made the threat in front of staff and a student three times in two days, first on November 16 at a whole-department training day.

In a complaint to James Cook University’s human resources department and WorkCover Queensland, the woman said Professor Nakata had told her she needed to increase Indigenous enrolment from 670 to 1000, a target she felt was unrealistic.

“He’s a Torres Strait Islander man and because of that and because we’re the Indigenous centre, we have things on our walls, and one of the things is the spear,” she told The Australian.

“He points to the spear and says if you don’t reach that target, I’m going to take that spear off the wall and I’m going to spear (woman’s name).

“On the Friday he repeated the same comment, and later that day he repeated the same thing in front of a student.

James Cook University in Townsville.

“It flabbergasted me. Everybody felt very uncomfortable … they sat there in silence, I think in shock.

“I felt totally humiliated, and I was also quite dumbfounded.”

The Australian asked Professor Nakata for a response.

He did not comment but a JCU spokesman said: “(The) university is aware of the alleged incident. All such allegations are taken seriously and handled in accordance with the university’s policies and procedures.”

The woman said she had worked with Professor Nakata for more than five years and they had previously had a good working relationship.

She said she tried to resolve the matter unofficially, by emailing Professor Nakata and telling him she “respectfully requested him” to stop making the comments.

“He said he was sorry and it was just a joke,” she said.

The woman said she had accepted his apology and was keen to work together as normal, but her relationship with him had deteriorated to the point where he did not speak to her. “On a normal day I’d have to speak to him half a dozen times, so that means I can’t do my job,” she said.

The woman said she felt bullied, and made a complaint to JCU’s human relations department on December 3, after she had been contacted about the alleged incident by The Cairns Post.

She then made a claim to WorkCover.

“I went to HR and they’ve basically done nothing,” she said.

“He’s a very respected Indigenous academic and he’s very high-profile and I think they don’t know what to do.

“If it was somebody at a lower level, they would have been suspended or sacked. They are trying to work out how to make me want to go away.”

The JCU spokesman said: “JCU has endeavoured to meet with the complainant but scheduled meetings have had to be postponed due to respective leave commitments.”

The woman has been on stress leave and annual leave.

Professor Nakata is the first Torres Strait Islander to graduate with a PhD in Australia and his decades-long research career has focused on Australian Indigenous education.

He was awarded the Member of the Order of Australia in 2020.