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Stolen Wages motion passes the Senate

21 June 2007 - Media Release - Democrats' Deputy Leader Senator Andrew Bartlett said that the successful passage through the Senate of his stolen wages motion today gives impetus to the issue as the Senate awaits the government's response to the SenateCommittee's report Unfinished Business: Indigenous Stolen Wages.

"Support for this motion indicates that there must be immediate and urgentresolution on this issue," Senator Bartlett said.

"The Senate is currently waiting on the governments response to the Unfinished Business report and we have requested that response by 7 August 2007. The overwhelming view of the Committee examining this issue was thaturgent cooperation between federal, state and territory governments was needed to discover just how widespread the practice of withholding wages wasacross Australia.

"The practice was much more widespread than is often thought and its impactsare still keenly felt by those affected; it continues to ripple through families and indeed the wider Indigenous community.

The report of the Senate Committee inquiry, initiated by Senator Bartletthas brought some positive actions from both the Queensland the Western Australian governments in trying to resolve this issue.

"Today's motion and the Committee report give governments a clearopportunity to help bridge the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Government can't continue to sit on its hands in the face ofsuch a grave injustice.

"I call on the federal government to respond promptly to the UnfinishedBusiness report. It is time for all governments - state, territory and federal to face up to and commit to addressing decades of unfinishedbusiness as a matter of national priority. The stolen wages saga is an important part of this," Senator Bartlett concluded.

Source: Senator Andrew Bartlett
Deputy Parliamentary Leader and Democrats Senator for Queensland
Australian Democrats spokesperson for Indigenous Affairs

related links:

• Senator Bartlett's motion
• The Senate's Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee reported its findings on stolen wages to the Senate on 7 December 2006. Access the report here:

Further information: stolen wages issues page - includes news index and external links

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