Australian Labour Market Issues: an Historical Perspective

1998 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 690-715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joe Isaac
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Historical Perspective ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Institutional Arrangement ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Women's Wages ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Wage Inflation

This paper provides an historical perspective on topics related to recent developments in the Australian industrial relations system discussed in this issue of the Journal— the 'living wage' concept and the safety net, 'fairness' in relative wages, women's wages, the Accord, labour market decentralisation and the role of trade unions. It concludes that recent legislation was not necessary to facilitate increased productivity because the prevailing system had shown sufficient responsiveness to the needs of the economy, both macro and micro. By limiting the jurisdiction of the AIRC and reducing the power of the weaker unions, recent legislation bas created a dual system with a less equitable pay structure and an institutional arrangement less able to deal with wage inflation under more buoyant economic conditions.

Prospects for Women under Labor and Coalition Industrial Relations Policies

1995 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 234-251
Author(s):  
Barbara Pocock
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Part Time

Women continue to lag some distance behind men in the Australian labour market - in relation to pay differentials, recognition of their skills, award coverage and their concentration in part-time and casual work. This article examines the implications of Labor and Coalition industrial relations policies in relation to women with a focus on three issues; the level of decentralisaton of the system; the strength of the safety net underpinning enterprise industrial relations; and the role of unions. The article concludes that while women are further disadvantaged by some aspects of Labor's current enterprise bargaining processes, they would be much more damaged by the coalition's proposals.

Practitioner Review: Continuity and Change: The Fair Work Act in Aviation

2011 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 392-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Bussell ◽  
John Farrow
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Aviation Industry ◽  
Continuity And Change ◽  
National Debate ◽  
New Development ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact

This article begins by discussing the specific industrial relations challenges of the highly competitive aviation industry. It then reflects on the outcome of the recent intense national debate over industrial relations, exploring the consequences of that debate for practice and policy, and discusses some key issues that remain in play. Although the Fair Work Act 2009 may have come about as a reaction to what many perceive as the ‘excesses’ of Work Choices, the new Act does not so much ‘wind back the clock’ as represent a significant new development in Australia’s long and unique industrial relations history. This article will discuss the impact of the changes, to date, made by the Fair Work Act on one organization, including the expansion of the ‘safety net’, and how the new compromise between the role of the ‘collective’ and the role of the ‘individual’ struck by the Act has the potential to fundamentally change the nature and structure of bargaining. We offer these comments as practitioners who have worked under successive industrial relations regimes since the early 1980s.

The Labor Government's Industrial Relations Policy: Flexibility with Equity

1992 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Cook
Keyword(s):  
Management Practices ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
International Markets ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Workplace Culture ◽  
Equity And Efficiency ◽  
The Government ◽  
Wage Increases

The fundamental objective of the Government's industrial relations policy is to encourage and assist Australian companies and their employees to adopt work and management practices that will strengthen their capacity to compete successfully both in domestic and international markets. To this end we support co-operative and equitable workplace bargaining, with wage increases being linked to the reform of work practices and attitudes. Our support for decentralised bargaining is aimed at improving productivity by fostering a new workplace culture of striving for continuous improvement. We emphatically reject the view that such an outcome will be achieved by wholesale deregulation and reliance on unfettered market forces. The Government is committed, for both equity and efficiency reasons, to maintaining the Accord approach to wages policy. We are also committed to an independent Australian Industrial Relations Commission playing the vital role of protecting lower paid employees through the safety net of minimum award wages and conditions.

Approaching the 21st Century: Perspectives on Korean Industrial Relations

1997 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seoghun Woo
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Presidential Address ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Direct Interaction ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Government ◽  
Time Changes ◽  
Future Direction ◽  
Major Factors

This paper argues that the future direction for the development of Korean industrial relations will evolve through direct interaction between employers and trade unions (either conflictual or cooperative). The government is likely to play a less interventionist role in industrial relations, compared with the past, and to adopt the role of mediator between unions and employers. Characteristics of Korean industrial relations during the pre- 1987 period is firstly examined; four major factors are used to explain the industrial relations practice during this time. Changes after 1987 are also considered. Special consideration is given to interaction between the environment and the three major industrial relations participants, and the interactions between them. Both macro and micro aspects of industrial relations are examined. The special Presidential Address (26/04/1996), known as New Conception of Industrial Relations, is also analysed in terms of its implications for future industrial relations issues in Korea.

scholarly journals Learning to live with the law? The legislative attack on British trade unions since 1979

1970 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda Dickens
Keyword(s):  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Legal Intervention ◽  
British Trade ◽  
Industrial Action ◽  
The Law ◽  
Labour Legislation

This article takes as its focus the labour legislation of the Conservative governments in Britain under Mrs. Thatcher since 1979. It locates the legislation in its broader context and examines three main prongs of what is seen as a legislative attack on the trade unions: the move away from collective industrial relations; the restricted terrain for lawful industrial action; and legal intervention in internal union affairs. The immediate impact, use of and response to this legislation is discussed and a broader question raised concerning whether, as well as having to adjust to the new legal framework, British trade unions are reappraising their attitude to the role of law in industrial relations more generally.

scholarly journals Young Workers’ Perceptions of Trade Unions in Portugal

2017 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 574-595 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilona Kovács ◽  
João Dias ◽  
Maria da Conceição Cerdeira
Keyword(s):  
Collective Action ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Structural Factors ◽  
Young Workers ◽  
Family Status ◽  
Skilled Workers ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
High Concentration

This paper seeks to capture how unions are perceived by young workers in Portugal and to identify different types of perceptions. Our analysis considers both structural factors and subjective experiences and is based on semi-structured interviews with young people working in sectors with a high concentration of youth employment. The fact that young workers are increasingly exposed to the pressures of unemployment and precarious work might suggest that there is homogeneity in their perceptions about trade unions and collective action. However, our results show that young workers’ perceptions are not homogenous and that they interconnect with distinct segments, characterized by different socio-economic conditions, as defined by family status, education level and position in the labour market. Three types of perceptions were identified by content analysis of the interviews: positive, negative and critical perceptions. A final segment of younger and less-skilled workers, of families with low educational and economic resources and having left school prematurely, have neither information nor any understanding about unions. Our findings support the thesis that diversity of educational and early labour market experiences, which characterize transition processes to adulthood, shape the relation between young workers and unions, in particular the motivation to join unions. Capturing the diversity of young workers experiences and perceptions is a challenge to industrial relations research, as well as to trade unionism. It can provide unions with important insights into how to adapt their strategies to recruit new young members and to mobilize the latent interests of young workers in collective action.

Cross-border labour markets and the role of trade unions in representing migrant workers’ interests

2020 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-255
Author(s):  
Adrien Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Migrant Workers ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Organizational Structures ◽  
Labour Markets ◽  
Labour Migration ◽  
Organizational Dynamics ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Survey Results

New patterns of labour migration are reshaping labour markets and raising new challenges for labour market actors, especially trade unions. This article critically discusses unionization strategies targeting migrant workers and the political and organizational dilemmas involved, taking as an example the case of Luxembourg, a founding member of the European Union with a highly internationalized labour market. Relying on qualitative research and survey results, this article sets out the strategies adopted by trade unions to unionize migrant workers, before discussing the dilemmas and tensions related to the diversification of trade union policies and organizational structures in response to labour migration. It provides valuable insights into two broader issues: the socio-political and organizational dynamics involved in trade unions’ inclusion of migrant workers and the potential role of trade unions in building transnational links and cohesion in border regions.

Labour Relations in Disorganized Capitalism: A Five-Nation Comparison

1988 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
S Lash ◽  
P Bagguley
Keyword(s):  
Great Britain ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
United States Of America ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
The United States ◽  
West Germany ◽  
Alternative Account ◽  
Labour Relations ◽  
Recent Developments

A critique of the ‘Regulation School's' account of the development of ‘post-Fordist’ patterns of industrial relations is presented. An alternative account of the ‘disorganization’ of capitalist social relations is presented with particular emphasis on the role of agents of disorganization of labour relations, It is shown through a comparative analysis of recent developments in industrial relations in Sweden, West Germany, France, Great Britain, and the United States of America that the particular patterns of disorganization will vary depending on whether capital, labour, or the state has most influence over the process of restructuring.

The Ambiguous Role of Trade Unions in Startup Formation

2018 ◽  
pp. 308-325
Author(s):  
Sylvia Rohlfer
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Occupational Choice ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
The United States ◽  
Firm Formation ◽  
The Individual

In this chapter the authors analyze the role of trade unions for firm formation from the perspective of the individual entrepreneur. The industrial relations and entrepreneurship literature reviewed shows that trade unions matter in firm formation decisions in three ways: with regard to the occupational choice problem, the management of potential employees and the resource availability for the startup. Taking the Spanish economy as an example the findings from an empirical study demonstrate the perceived actual and potential role of unions for firm formation. The findings are compared with trade union activity in Germany and the United States in order to draw recommendations for trade union strategists.

Trade Unionists in Parliament and Macroeconomic Performance: Evidence from Germany

2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 101-116
Author(s):  
Michael Berlemann ◽  
Klaus W. Zimmermann
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Macroeconomic Performance ◽  
Macroeconomic Conditions ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Members Of Parliament

This article focuses on the role of unionised members of parliament. While unions have a direct effect on the labour market via wage negotiations, they often also take part in political debates. In many countries, significant shares of the members of parliament are also members of a trade union. However, up to now little empirical evidence is available on the extent to which unionised members of parliament try to achieve union-specific goals and thereby influence the macroeconomic conditions of an economy. A recent study for Germany comes to the conclusion that union members in the Bundestag cannot be seen as the parliamentary arm of the trade unions. However, we present contradicting empirical results by showing that, in Germany at least, the degree of unionisation of parliamentary members has a negative impact on economic growth and increases inflation, while unemployment remains unaffected.

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