Coles has stood by its inclusion of an “acknowledgment of country” on its receipts despite the move being slammed as “unnecessary” by an Indigenous leader.
“Coles Group acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia. We recognize their strength and pay our respects to Elders, past, present and emerging,” the message says.
“Coles Group extends that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and recognize their rich cultures and consulting connection to land and waters.”
It comes after Channel 9’s The Block and Channel 10’s The Masked Singer also featured acknowledgment to country messages.
Wurundjeri elder Ian Hunter told the Herald Sun on Wednesday the Coles receipt message was “unnecessary”.
“For it to have more meaning, it would be better for Coles to locate the message on receipts for specific areas, for example Coles in Darebin could acknowledge the Woiwurrung people,” he told the newspaper.
“The acknowledgment of country shouldn’t be taken lightly. I’m getting fed up with this; it’s a real overreach.”
But in a statement, a Coles spokeswoman defended the move.
“With more than 2,500 stores nationally and as one of Australia’s largest employers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Coles Group is proud to include an acknowledgment of country on our receipts,” she said.
“We work hard to create opportunities for Indigenous peoples, organisations, communities and customers to engage with our business and continue to increase understanding, value and recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, histories, knowledge and rights.”
She also shared a Coles Group document titled Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement.
“Our purpose at Coles is to ‘sustainably feed all Australians to help them lead healthier, happier lives’,” a message from Coles Group chief executive Steven Cain says.
“This purpose is underpinned by our strategy to win together with our team members, suppliers and communities, and includes a commitment to diversity and inclusion for all Australians – including Indigenous Australians.”
The document states that over the past 10 years, Coles has increased its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander team member representation from 65 to more than 4,400, representing 3.8 per cent of employees.
Last month, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson dramatically stormed out of the Senate during the routine morning acknowledgment, yelling, “No, I won’t. I never will.”
Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe, a DjabWurrung Gunnai Gunditjmara woman, slammed the move as “disrespectful” and “racist”.
But Indigenous Senator Jacinta Price from the Country Liberal Party said she “understands” why Ms Hanson stormed out.
“While I understand the need for acknowledgment is important, we’ve just been absolutely saturated with it,” she said at the time.
“It’s getting to the point where it’s actually removing the sacredness of traditional culture and practices. It’s become almost like a throwaway line. We don’t want to see all these symbolic gestures, we want to see real action.”
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