Indigenous Employer & Employee Case Studies June 2013 QTIC would like to acknowledge funding provided by the Queensland Government to support the revision of the resource. Introduction 2. Coolgaree Bay Bistro Indigenous people continue to play an BUILDING COMMUNITIES integral role in Queensland’s tourism 4. Industry Accreditation industry landscape. The following stories CONNECTING TO COUNTRY highlight both individuals and teams’ 6. CaPTA Group achievements in a particularly competitive FINDING HER FEET and challenging environment. 8. Yurri Muntha Café MAPPING THE FUTURE Enjoy the 2013 installment of 10. Minjerribah Camping Queensland Tourism Industry Council’s FEEL THE SPIRIT ‘Case Studies’. 12. Mossman Gorge Centre HOUSE OF JOY Acknowledgements. The Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) wishes to thank the following This document was designed for organisations for their contribution to this document: Coolgaree Bay Bistro, Industry Accreditation, on screen reading. Please think of Capta Group, Yurri Muntha Café, Minjerribah Camping, Mossman Gorge Centre our great land before printing. 1 Coolgaree Bay Bistro Building Communities Coolgaree Bay Bistro commenced However, the establishment of The menu reflects a conscious effort trading on 4 October 2012 and is this facility, other infrastructure, to educate Indigenous people in centrally located on Palm Island. a committed Mayor, Councillors healthy eating habits and is structured Palm Island is predominately an and Council staff to economic around a balance of all five food Indigenous settlement and is situated development, has seen a groups. some sixty five kilometres north - west transformation that all of Townsville in tropical northern and sundry, can and are, Queensland. extremely proud of. It is a remote and isolated community The ‘brain child’ of ex There is a positive ‘feel’ and Information Technology and has had a somewhat chequered confidence on Palm Island… past. expert, Shane Stratton, the Bistro has become a meeting place for the local Indigenous population and the preferred employer Shane reflects on the culture of on the Island. the business, ‘We have created The operation was made possible a competitive workplace, an through a grant from the Palm environment where employees Island Council and in a understand the importance ‘fashion’ is an up market of customer - not a replacement for the island means to an end, but canteen that ceased an opportunity to operation in 2008. create and reaffirm relationships’. It is owned by the Council and operated under a lease ‘The Bistro is a place arrangement and serves where everyone is given anywhere between 200 a chance. Give and take and 250 meals per day. make up a large portion of our daily mantra - the employees here really want to work and forge a career pathway in food and beverage’. 2 Coolgaree Bay Bistro Building Communities ‘We have never had the need to The Coolgaree Beach Bistro also advertise for employees, the Palm provides work experience placements Island grapevine works very quickly for the local Community Development and the available positions are filled in Program (CDP). This has enabled hours’. participants to remain local and The facility is dual purpose, a bustling eliminates the need to leave family Bistro by day and a commercial and friends support networks to travel kitchen to the adjacent licenced to Townsville and beyond for crucial premise by night. work experience. Coolgaree Bay Bistro employs seven permanent and four casual Indigenous people as part of the team that Specific training has been identified delivers seven day a week service to and implemented for those seeking the resident population of around four thousand people. management opportunities. Multi - skill ‘on the job’ training underpins Shane’s engagement Shane Stratton’s closing remarks strategy with the staff. He sees capture the essence of the community his overall role as the guide and impact the Coolgaree Beach Bistro has mentor for the new employees and had on the people of Palm Island, ‘A empowerment as the methodology place has been created that is highly best suited for the experienced crew. respected and where all people are Furthermore, he believes an inclusive acknowledged and welcomed. It is approach helps identify leadership place to be proud of, a place for locals talent and keeps everybody on track, to learn new skills and a place where in the ‘know’ and moving in the locals can call home’. same direction. The staff members are particularly reliable, honest and outwardly promote a cohesive team environment. 3 Industry Accreditation Connecting to Country Dean Nulty is a non - Indigenous, fifty A forty five minute conversation This sensible approach creates two years young trainer of Indigenous with Dean is both refreshing and the opportunity to show case the people who lives in north Queensland enlightening. You cannot help but be Indigenous culture, enables first - and works in the Wet Tropics and Cape caught up in his passion for his work, hand research aspects of particular York regions of the state. his understanding of his craft and the individual clan nuances and capture By his own admission, the body may respect for the people he has had the the thoughts and stories of the be beginning to falter, but the ‘stuff’ privilege of coming into contact with. Traditional Owners. between the ears is still going fine, An experience base thank you very much. of ten years in tour ‘Indigenous people read guiding, throughout the northern extremities of the landscape the way others Australia, has provided read a book’. the launching pad for a successful shift into the training arena. As Dean explains further, ‘It is all Dean and Jacqui Conway’s about being comfortable in the training organisation, Industry environment and having a positive Accreditation, delivers training attitude. Open and honest Certificates III and IV in communication at all times - walking Tourism Guiding for future the walk. Using the ‘Elder’s’ and existing enterprises. knowledge base to keep the culture alive. Establishing Unlike the majority of trust and showing respect traditional classroom for people who have been training delivery, he on this land for sixty believes that the best thousand years. way to connect with I do not see colours, Indigenous people is to I see people’. teach skill sets on country and most importantly in their own environment. 4 Industry Accreditation Connecting to Country After four years of playing in the I asked Dean what he thought Dean is a particularly well respected Indigenous training space and a stint was some of the challenges facing professional and his wide ranging in Madagascar, Dean has developed a the Tourism Industry in Far North skill base, is often called on by teaching style and methodology that is Queensland and he replied with “the tour operators to take guided tours, underpinned by a simple yet effective transient nature of the Industry makes interview and train new staff and up principle - he calls it the ‘Three Way it difficult to retain quality staff and skill current staff members. Symbiotic Guiding Principle’. It relates the proliferation of tour desks has to the inter relationship between the affected the distribution guide, the environment and the guest. mechanics of some In his own words, smaller enterprises’. ‘The synergy must be there for ‘The synergy must be there for every He added, ‘It is certainly every element of the experience element of the experience or it will not not all doom and gloom, or it will not work’. work’. we have a fantastic The use of theming and images product here, people (visual cues with simple pictures) come to see the World Heritage Reef, of real people ‘on country’ often Rainforest and Tropical Savannahs. assist in breaking done barriers The industry is now recognising the especially in terms of social, cultural, importance of Indigenous tourism, as literacy and numeracy challenges. more and more clients to the region Written assessment is kept to a wish to experience Aboriginal culture. bare minimum, with a concerted There is much that the Traditional effort to move towards testing being Owners can contribute to the visitor based around ‘hands on’ practical experience, and Industry Accreditation experiences and oral exercises. hope to be a small part of that story. 5 CaPTA Group Finding Her Feet It has been repeated many times Her first, post school decision was for change. It gave her the opportunity throughout my working life - you to leave family and friends in Cairns to work with school age children only get one chance to make a first and move to Port Adelaide in South in culture and dance, preserve impression - and Kylie Singleton has Australia to study at the Aboriginal Indigenous culture and teach nomadic certainly mastered the art. Community College. A love for motor based skills - bush tucker, medicines Kylie lives in Cairns, Tropical North vehicles encouraged Kylie to enrol in and tracking. Queensland and is a direct decedent a male dominated mechanics of the Yirrganydji tribe. course which unfortunately only lasted for twelve months. An ‘Find something you are She freely admits that not everything overly competitive environment passionate about and give it has always gone to plan in her life, and a bullying culture made however, perseverance and a life motto learning difficult and remaining all you got, because you are of ‘don’t be shame be game - give it a in the ‘course’ untenable. go, cause you don’t know unless you responsible for your future - try’. Not to be dissuaded from no one else’. furthering her education, Kylie ‘Find something you are re-enrolled at the College passionate about and give it in a legal bridging course with the all you got, because you are aim of studying at degree level responsible for your future - at the Adelaide University. Again no one else’ circumstances conspired against her - has helped this resilient and the study stint lasted less than a young lady find her feet.