Eric Rives

Eric Rives, a big, burly Californian from Manteca in the verdant San Joaquin Valley, is a long way from his roots in dusty Tom Price in the Pilbara where he is working on the Community Development Employment Project (CDEP).

In fact Eric first came to Tom Price as a site manager for a major building contract at Pilbara Iron.

Says Eric, “Managing the project I noticed that we were unable to retain Indigenous labour. Many of our Aboriginal workers could scarcely read the safety notices, which meant they were putting themselves and other people in danger. What was worse, some people were dismissive and disrespectful towards them, implying it was their own fault. So, on the basis that you can’t blame them if you don’t train them, I began to get interested in Aboriginal education.”

That is how Eric came to be working on Elect Education - a literacy programme being piloted by Pilbara Iron together with CDEP.

Using an integrated spelling, writing and reading course comprising both CD-ROMS and well laid out manuals, Eric is facilitating a workshop at the Tom Price CDEP.

The classroom, with about 20 students ranging from teenagers to some who are middle-aged, pulses with energy.

Susan Parker is writing a sentence from the workbook. “I love the way I make my letter b,” she says.

Alma Tumbler, a 54 year old Yindjibarndi woman says, “I left school at 13 and didn’t get much learning in reading and writing. But this is way easier than it was at school.” 

Classrooms pulse with energy.

Alma has been attending Elect Education since its inception and is enthusiastic about the programme’s benefits. “You don’t see Aboriginals in the high jobs,” she says seriously, “so we have to learn how to write and read and pronounce things properly.”

“That kind of positive attitude and motivation is very common in the programme,” observes Eric.

“The results so far have been really impressive. Eight out of 11 of our students have been accepted by Pilbara Iron and have sailed through their induction programmes. Now they are being trained on the job: bobcats; front end loaders; backhoes… you name it.”

Eric laughs. “I may be a long way from home, and certainly I could be earning far more if I went back to site management, but, doing what I’m doing here – I really get a buzz. I think I’ve found my niche.”