- CHS 1953-1958
- Completed a Bachelor of Laws degree at Melbourne University
- Worked for the then Postmaster-General’s Department of the Commonwealth Government.
- Former President of the Community and Public Sector Union
Robert worked for Telstra (as the company is now known) through until his death in 2009, specialising in computer mainframe technology planning. Robert was also active in the Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) from 1975. He was the local workplace delegate continuously for over 25 years and was President of the Victorian Branch of CPSU for 11 years until the end of 1999. Robert was also the National Secretary of the Telstra Section of CPSU and a member of CPSU’s National Council. He was the CPSU nominee on many Selection Panels, Promotion Appeal Boards and Committees, Disciplinary Appeal Boards and Committees. In this latter capacity, he had a fellow CHS alumnus, Dr Ron Huttner, appear before him on a number of occasions.
Robert was one of four member-director Trustees for the Telstra Superannuation Scheme (TSS), Australia’s largest corporate superannuation fund with about $6.1 billion in assets and over 73,000 members. After completing a one-year cycle on the Audit and Compliance Committee, Robert moved to the Investment Committee which oversees the key investment decisions of TSS.
Robert was a keen photographer, concentrating on photographing steam trains in their natural habitat. Over the years, Robert’s pursuit of steam took him to India, Pakistan, Nepal, Indonesia, South America, Southern Africa, Turkey, New Zealand as well as all over Australia. Robert’s work has been published in a number of books. The other great interest in Robert’s life was music. After a couple of attempts to learn the piano and a stint in the local church choir, the only musical instrument that Robert played regularly was the gramophone. Robert collected recorded music from the age of 14 and had a vast library of LPs and CDs of classical music. Robert passed away in 2009, survived by wife Maureen and stepson Luke. Updated 2020