Swagman

A swagman is an old Australian term describing an underclass of transient temporary workers, particularly during the depression of the 1890s and the Great Depression of the 1930s (though, in much of Australia the 1890's depression was far worse).

Unemployed men (they were mostly single men) travelled the rural areas of Australia, their few meagre possessions rolled up and carried with their "swag" (a primitive bed) over their shoulder. Typically, they would seek work in farms and towns they travelled through, and in many cases the farmers, if no permanent work was available, would often provide food and shelter in return for some menial task.

The swagman remains famous through the song Waltzing Matilda, by Banjo Patterson, which details a swagman who turns to stealing a sheep from the local squatter.