Gerard Griffin

The Decline of Australian Union Density—A Survey of the Literature

This paper reviews the literature on the decline in Australian union density within the context of similar research overseas. Five broad approaches are analyzed to study changes in unionization—structural shifts, macroeconomic factors, institu tional and organizational influences, the individual decision, and comparative material. Relevant Australian studies are critically reviewed and compared with studies performed in other countries. The review highlights the complexity of the problem, the need to avoid simplistic responses, and makes suggestions as to which areas of research appear most likely to increase our understanding of the recent sharp decline in unionization.

White-Collar Unionism 1969 to 1981: Some Determinants of Growth

This paper examines the growth in membership of Australian white-collar unions between 1969 and 1981. The pattern of growth is briefly outlined and the impact of the following determinants of this growth are traced: the increase of white-collar employment, the preference decision of the Arbitration Commission, the actions of the federal government, the closed-shop agreement in the retail industry and the impact of industrial conflict.

Trade Union Finances in the 1970s and 1980s

This paper outlines and analyzes trade union finances during the 1970s and 1980s. During the 1970s, despite an increasing membership and rising real income, trade unions experienced significant financial problems; in particular, expenditure outpaced income, and assets, measured on a membership per capita basis, decreased markedly. In contrast, and influenced by a falling membership, union financial ratios improved during the 1980s so that by 1989 unions were once again able to finance adequately their existing levels of membership services. An increase in the demand for such services, possibly generated by a move towards enterprise bargaining, could again threaten the financial status of unions.

One Union Peak Council: the Merger of ACSPA and CAGEO with the ACTU

The possibility of a merger between the ACTU and the white-collar peak councils was first raised publicly in 1969. By 1981, the Australian Council of Salaried and Professional Associations (ACSPA) and the Council of Australian Government Employee Organisations (CAGEO) has disbanded and most of their former members had affiliated to the ACTU. A number of factors, such as converging policies, the changing nature of white-collar unionists and, after 1975, a hostile federal government, pointed to the logic of unification. Despite these influences, however, the merger discussions virtually halted in the mid-1970s. The ultimate success of these discussions is largely attributable to the attitudes and actions ofsenior ASPCA officials and their belief in the concept of one peak council for all trade unions.

Barriers to Female Membership Participation in Trade Union Activities

Abstract Much of the literature on the relationship between trade union members and their level of participation in union activities assumes that female members face specific barriers that are unique to their gender. This paper reviews this literature, draws together its main contentions and then uses data from a questionnaire survey of members of a white-collar union to test the validity of these contentions. It also analyses the relevance of these suggested barriers to male unionists.

Psychological Aspects of Redundancy: An Australian Case Study

This study provides empirical evidence in support of the literature that contends that, following redundancy, unemployment has a deleterious psychological impact. First, the present study found that, following redundancy, those who remained unemployed were negatively affected with respect to mental health, while those who gained new employment reported improved mental health. Second, and associated with the first finding, those who remained unemployed reported less life satisfaction following redundancy, while those who gained new employment experienced improvement in life satisfaction. This negative impact of redundancy and ensuing unemployment was consistent over time but was apparently ameliorated by obtaining new employment.

Factors Related to Membership Participation in Public Sector Trade Union Activities

The issue of rank-and-file membership participation in the affairs of their trade union has received little attention in Australia. In this paper we focus on possible correlates of such participation. Based on a questionnaire survey of members of a public sector union (N=752) we devise three measures of participation and assess the contribution of a range of personal, job-related and union-related factors to participation levels.

Personal Characteristics and Industrial Militancy - in White-Collar Unions

In many industrial disputes there are often disagreements among the union members as to the desired course of action: some members may prefer to have recourse to the industrial tribunals, others may wish to take a relatively mild form of industrial action, while still others may feel that stronger action would be more appropriate. This note discusses the link between the members’ differing degrees of stated support for industrial militancy and personal characteristics. Using data from a study of unionists in the banking and insurance industries it is argued that members’ levels of attitudinal militancy are related to their personal characteristics.

The Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey and Industrial Conflict

The Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey (AWIRS) has the potential to further our understanding of many facets of the industrial relationship. Arguably, the study and analysis of industrial conflict is one facet that can most benefit from the survey. This assertion is based on two grounds. First, industrial conflict, and particularly strikes, receive a disproportionate amount of attention in Australia. This focus can be partly explained by factors such as the political character of Australian unionism, including links between the union movement and the Australian Labor Party, the arbitral systems that, in theory, negate the necessity for industrial action but that have resulted in unique strike patterns, the centralized nature of the industrial relations system and the use of legislation against trade union actions. Second, despite this amount of societal attention, relatively little is known about the extent, form, nature and causes of industrial conflict, particularly of non-strike forms of conflict. Thus, the scope for AWRS in this area is large indeed. The survey focuses on three forms of conflict: voluntary labour turnover, absenteeism and organized industrial action consisting of strikes, stop-work meetings, overtime bans or restrictions, go-slows, picketing, work to rule and other bans. Rather coyly, the discussion on conflict in the survey report, Industrial Relations at Work (Callus et al. 1991), is contained under the heading ‘Industrial Relations Indicators’. Within the text, however, the authors do not shy away from the assertion that turnover and absenteeism can be forms of conflict. They quote with approval the Minister for Industrial Relations’ recent description of these individual actions as the ‘silent strike’ (Cook 1990) and also refer to literature, such as Edwards and Scullion (1982), that argues that such actions, in some situations, are a form of unorganized conflict. As well as determining the extent and type of industrial action, AWRS also sought information on the forms of the most recent action and the issues that caused this recent action. The structure of this paper.follows that of the discussion on conflict in the AWRS report. The first section focuses on labour turnover, the second on absenteeism and the third on industrial action. Within each section the

Union Consolidation: The ACTU Mergers

In December 1979 the Australian Council of Salaried and Professional Associations (ACSPA), the largest white-collar union peak council, disbanded and most of its affiliates transferred to the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU). Two years later, the Council of Australian Government Employee Organisations (CAGEO), the federal public sector peak council, also disbanded and all of its members affiliated with the ACTU. This paper analyses the merger of these three union peak councils. The thrust of the paper is to explain why the mergers were successfully carried through. It is argued that while the explanation lies in a number of considerations, such as the convergence of political and economic forces, the roles played by a number of key officials were of prime importance. We commence with a brief description of ACSPA and CAGEO and of the merger process.1 The literature on union mergers is reviewed to provide a framework of analysis that is then applied to the merger of ACSPA and CAGEO with the ACTU.