Iris grew up on Cherbourg Reserve in Queensland. “At the age of 15 to 16, the government organised for you to work as a domestic woman,” she explains. 

Iris was under the impression she would earn five pounds a week as a domestic helper. But her first pay was less than half the anticipated amount. When she queried this, Iris was informed that three pounds from each week’s pay would be sent back to Cherbourg.