Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–1 Part two The parties CHAPTER SIX EMPLOYEE REPRESENTATION: TRADE UNIONS

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–2 Overview  What do unions do?  Union structures  Origins and evolution of Australian unions  Why employees join unions  Explaining declining union density  Strategies for union renewal  Female representation in unions  Final observations  Summary

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–3 What do unions do?  Definition of a trade union: a continuous association of wage earners for the purpose of maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment (Webb and Webb 1894 : 1).

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–4  Role and influence: –collective voice of employees at the workplace and other levels –political/social lobbyist –revolutionary role –criticised as being anti-market. What do unions do?

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–5  There are three main aspects of union structure: 1.the shape of individual unions 2.internal governance structures within these individual unions 3.the external affiliations and alliances that individual unions enter on a geographic or industry basis. Union structures

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–6 Union structures (cont.) The shape of unions  The most common categorisation of unions according to their membership base: 1.‘craft/occupational unions’:  work in the same craft or occupations but in different industries  first to emerge 2.‘industry unionism’:  work in the same industry but doing different crafts/work  public sector.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–7 Union structures (cont.) The shape of unions (cont.)  The most common categorisation of unions according to their membership base (cont.): 3.‘company/enterprise unions’:  restrict membership to employees of one company  rare in English-speaking countries  common in Asia, especially Japan 4.‘general/conglomerate unions’:  allow anyone to join regardless of job or industry  AWU.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–8 Union structures (cont.) Internal governance structures  Concerned with the processes by which decisions about policy and actions are made within unions: –usually formal mechanisms by which members participate in union affairs.  Two common features of union structure: 1.usually four levels in the decision-making structure of a union 2.distinction between ‘rank and file’ members.  Unions workplace tasks are often undertaken by committees: –usually in multi-union worksites.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–9 Union structures (cont.) Internal governance structures (cont.)  Unions usually affiliates with larger bodies: –labour councils –ACTU –AMA/other.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–10 Origins and evolution of Australian unions  Long history—existed in Australia for more than 150 years. 1800s–1890  First mutual benefit societies formed from skilled artisans.  ‘Unions’ emerged from those societies.  Permanency achieved in 1850s.  Key unions formed: – mining – maritime – pastoral.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–11  Unions were in a strong position by the end of 1880s.  Depression and strikes between 1890–1894 destroyed trade unions.  Formation of Australian Labor Party (ALP) in early 1890s. Origins and evolution of Australian unions (cont.) 1890–1900

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–12  Conciliation and Arbitration Act of 1904  Unions prospered: –‘right not might’ concept cemented under law –grew rapidly in number and membership.  Emergence of Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) and state branches. Origins and evolution of Australian unions (cont.) 1900–1989

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–13  Changing conditions: – socially – economically – politically. Origins and evolution of Australian unions (cont.) 1990s–2000s

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–14 Why employees join unions  Crouch 1982: –dissatisfaction with economic aspects of the job –a desire to influence aspects of work environment through a union –benefits of unionism outweighs costs.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–15 Why employees join unions (cont.)  Various reasons for union membership: –‘instrumental’ considerations –‘ideological’ beliefs –‘normative’ pressures.  Most Australians join because of instrumental considerations.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–16 Explaining declining union density  Why is union density declining? – Changing composition of employment. – Economic factors. – Changing popularity of unions. – Role of management. – Government policies. – Union policies and structures.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–17 Explaining declining union density (cont.) Changing composition of employment  Growth in services sector.  Part-time, casual workers.  Self-employment.  Public-/private-sector shifts.  Size of the workplace.  Young workers.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–18  Unemployment.  ACTU/ALP Accord reduced the influence of individual unions and their members.  All workers received the same benefits whether they were union members or not: –tax reductions –guaranteed wage increases –superannuation. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Economic factors

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–19  Unions seen as being too powerful by some.  Poor public image.  Importance of image of unions among members more important than among community members. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Changing popularity of unions

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–20 1.Polices aimed at replacing union role in the workplace: – enhanced communications – involvement in decision making – employee shareholding schemes. 2.Strategies aimed at isolating unions: – restricting access to employees – denying unions a role in wages/conditions setting. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Role of management

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–21 3.Management tactics aimed at reducing union membership: – additional incentives to employees – greater level of formal internal communication channels – job satisfaction – individual contracts. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Role of management (cont.)

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–22  Introduction of individual contracts.  Prohibition of compulsory unionism and preference to unionists.  Reduction of authority of arbitration tribunals.  More difficult procedures for union rights of entry.  New and increased penalties for industrial action. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Government policies

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–23  Union structures and policies may have contributed to membership decline.  Amalgamation exercise: –unions became too big and less democratic.  Accord may have alienated union members: –unions became mechanisms of government and allied to employers –showed up flaws in union structure. Explaining declining union density (cont.) Union policies and structures

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–24 Strategies for union renewal Amalgamation and rationalisation  History of amalgamation: –300 unions into 17 broad industry groupings –greater utilisation of resources –50 unions affiliated with ACTU in  Amalgamation strategy’s limited success: –has reduced number of unions and increased efficiencies –may have reduced union membership.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–25 Strategies for union renewal (cont.) Recruitment of members  Lack of a ‘recruitment culture’.  Emphasis on day-to-day matters rather than planning.  Strategies for union renewal: – Organising Works program (1995):  Organising model vs servicing model. –  activism  resources put where jobs are growing  greater use of technology  campaign strategies. – Future strategies: Unions for a fairer society.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–26  Mixed results: – has not reversed the decline in union membership – improved financial revenue for unions – improved many unions that have an organising culture (but not all) – increased range of services offered by unions.  Most unions still concentrate their efforts on grievance resolution (reactive) rather than recruitment (pro-active). Strategies for union renewal (cont.) Recruitment of members (cont.)

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–27 Female representation in unions  The typical female employee is less likely to be unionised than the typical male employee. –Possible explanations:  unions slow to recognise concerns of women  women tend to be employed in workplaces that are difficult to organise  labour-market issues (concentrated in unskilled work)  part-time/casual nature of work held by women  under-represented in ACTU and in senior union roles  child bearing and rearing duties  perception of unions—not encouraging female participation.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–28 Female representation in unions (cont.)  The typical female employee is less likely to be unionised than the typical male employee (cont.). –Possible remedies:  need to encourage more women to become officials— this can be done by: changing selection criteria to reflect reality changing meeting times introducing quotas for women.

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–29  Unions are important mechanisms for the articulation and representation of employee interests: – structures and behaviours vary widely.  Australian trade unions were major beneficiaries of the conciliation and arbitration system: – but limited workplace organisation.  Decline in union membership in 1980s onwards: – adoption of new strategies for recruitment and organisation from 1990s – unclear yet as to whether these strategies are working. Final observations

Copyright  2005 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PowerPoint Slides t/a Industrial Relations 3e by Bray, Deery, Walsh and Waring 6–30 Summary  Primary purpose of unions is to protect and improve the wellbeing of members: – critics see unionism as unfair monopolies, preventing the operation of the labour market – supporters see unions as a corrective to the power of employers.  Majority of union members were, historically, older males, but females are now represented in near equal numbers.  Marked decline in union membership over recent years due to a number of factors. This is being addressed by: – union amalgamations – provision of better services to existing members – greater emphasis on recruitment.