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Culturally diverse staff at the ABC have been mistaken for other people of the same background, subjected to racial slurs, and passed up for career opportunities because of their backgrounds, a comprehensive examination of experiences of racism within the national broadcaster has heard.
The review led by Indigenous lawyer Terri Janke was commissioned after several prominent departures from the ABC, including high-profile reporter Stan Grant, citing “institutional failure” to respond to racist abuse from the community and incidents within the broadcaster.
The “Listen Loudly, Act Strongly” report spoke to 120 participants comprising current and former ABC staff to hear their experiences of racism at work.
Just one participant said they had not personally experienced racism within the ABC.
The review found “racism exists within the ABC workplace” and “ABC staff are subjected to racism from external individuals and organisations in connection with their work”.
The report’s authors said the ABC had been proactive in introducing measures to address racism, but the implementation of those strategies had been inconsistent.
“ABC has shown a visible and tangible commitment to creating a culturally safe workplace,” the reviewers found.
“[But] there are ongoing psychosocial hazards in the ABC that require immediate action to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all staff.”
Managing director David Anderson has apologised to current and former ABC staff and says the review’s recommendations have been accepted in principle.
He said the review showed for all that the ABC had done, there was more to do.
“When you are reading the firsthand accounts of people who have felt the way that they do by the actions that have otherwise — whether they were intended or not intended — the consequence was that racism has occurred,” he said.
“This racism cannot occur in any workplace and I’ve called it out today. If people believe that it’s OK to behave like this, this is not the place for them. We will find them and we will make sure they leave the ABC. It cannot happen.”
ABC managing director David Anderson apologised to current and former staff at the national broadcaster. (ABC News: Andrew O’Connor)
Staff detail experiences of abuse, ‘hurt and helplessness’
Among the experiences documented were cases of racial slurs or offensive comments about a person’s appearance or cultural practices, and people being excluded from workplace and social events due to their background.
The reviewers heard of staff being mistaken for someone more junior based on their racial appearance, and staff being passed up for opportunities “because you are considered to have been hired to only meet diversity criteria”.
Staff also told reviewers of racism entrenched in recruitment processes, pay discrepancies, employment conditions and the ABC’s complaints systems. The reviewers said this suggested racism was “systemic” at the broadcaster, and its policies and practices disadvantaged people who were First Nations and culturally and linguistically diverse.
“The majority of participants expressed significant hurt, helplessness and exhaustion around their experiences in the workplace,” the review found.
“Cumulatively, these experiences have a profound impact on the self-esteem, and sense of self-worth for participants. This impacts entire lives – not just in the workplace.”
The review of the ABC found the responsibility for ensuring a safe workplace must sit with the board, managing director and senior leadership team — and a lack of diversity among ABC leadership meant key decisions were often made by people who had not experienced racism firsthand.
Call for pay audit and diversity tracking accepted
After public commentary about issues of impartiality at the broadcaster, the reviewers also noted “the lens of lived experience [should] be valued in story-telling – seen as a strength, not a deficit, and that people of all backgrounds [should] feel safe to tell stories at the ABC”.
The review made multiple recommendations for the ABC, including improved responses to external attacks on staff including a central referral point for staff who are targeted by an external media organisation.
It recommended better representation at all levels of the organisation, including the board and senior leadership team, and training for managers to understand their obligations in ensuring the workplace was free from racism.
The leadership should also track diverse representation and data on racism complaints, as well as staff who exit the ABC potentially due to a lack of cultural safety and racism, it said.
And it recommended the ABC conduct a pay audit of all First Nations and culturally and linguistically diverse staff, including ongoing and non-ongoing staff.
“On behalf of everyone at the ABC, I am sorry for any and all racist behaviour and past harms experienced by our Indigenous and CALD employees, either currently or formerly employed,” Mr Anderson said in a statement.
“We all need to do better for our colleagues by preventing or acting on behaviour that seeks to discriminate against, bully or demean them.”
Minister expects report to foster more inclusive broadcaster
In a statement from the Bonner Committee, the ABC’s primary advisory body on issues relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff and content, it said staff had openly and bravely shared their experiences of racism, delivering a “searing” review.
“Listen Loudly, Act Strongly calls for deep listening. That’s the responsibility of everyone in the ABC now, to ensure this report is fully understood, and that every member of our team understands that the change called for in the report will require action by everyone,” committee representatives said in a statement.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said while the ABC has editorial independence, Australians rightly have high expectations of the broadcaster.
“It is incumbent on all organisations to address racism ensuring staff are safe at work and the ABC acknowledges it must confront uncomfortable truths if they want real change,” Ms Rowland said.
“This is an important piece of work for the organisation and I expect Dr Janke’s recommendations will contribute to a more diverse and inclusive national broadcaster.”
Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi said the review’s findings were not surprising, but that did not lessen the disappointment.
“The time for platitudes and hollow apologies is over. Strong action must be taken starting from the top. Anti-racism training must be mandatory and progress on change monitored and publicly reported,” Senator Faruqi said.
Former race discrimination commissioner Chin Tan has been engaged to continue the report’s work.
A new role, the director First Nations strategy, has also been created within the ABC’s leadership team to develop the plan to implement the report’s recommendations.
“This is day one … and it will take a long time. But it starts now,” Mr Anderson said.
ABC managing director David Anderson responds to the release of the “Listen Loudly, Act Strongly” report.
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