Extensive WA stolen wages revealed

Indigenous activists are awaiting the full report into stolen wages after preliminary research by a Western Australian government task force found 28,000 references to wages not having been paid to Aboriginal workers between 1905 to 1972. However it the number of workers whose wages were stolen is not yet known. Nor is the exact amount owed.

As well as archive searching, the taskforce consulted with 60 Indigenous communities and received information from 300 people. The taskforce's final report is due to be submitted to the government in June.

The Aboriginal Legal Service is expected to begin launching test cases in the WA Supreme Court within weeks to seek recovery of the wages.

From GLW issue 748