Green’s Dictionary of Slang

Bourke n.

In compounds

Bourke shower (n.)

(Aus.) a sandstorm.

1898		Windsor & Richmond Gaz. (NSW) 24 Sept. 3/1: One of the most miserable days experienced in Windsor for a long time was last Sunday. The wind blew continuously all day, and clouds of dust enveloped everything. It was a veritable Bourke shower.
1927		North Western Courier (Narrabri, NSW) 21 Nov. 1/6: To-day a ‘Bourke’ shower was experienced - much dust and little rain, - but at this time of the year we must not expect cool weather.
1958		J. Greenway ‘Aus. Cattle Lingo’ in AS Oct 33 (3) 164: bourke shower, n. A sandstorm.

In phrases

no work in Bourke [note Burridge & Manns in The Conversation 12 May 2020: The 1930s Depression gave us playful reduplications based on Australian landmarks and towns – ‘ain’t no work in Bourke’; ‘everything’s wrong at Wollongong’; ‘things are crook at Tallarook’]]

(Aus.) generic description of a poor job market .

1999		G. Seal Lingo 93: An apparently indigenous form of rhyming slang evolved here during the depression of the 1930s, according to Sidney Baker. This consisted of short rhymes on place names, usually with a sombre reference to unemployment and hardship, such as things are crook in tallarook, got the arse at bulli pass and no work in bourke.
2003		Aus. Word Map 🌐 Things are crook in Tallarook, there's no work in Bourke and there's f-all in Blackall.
2019		Macquarie Dict. Blog 4 Feb. 🌐 There's no work in Bourke and there's bugger all in Blackall.
2021		Betoota-isms 264: ‘Two months I’ve been sniffing round for a job, but there’s no work in Bourke, fuck all in Blackall’.