Exploding the Stability Myth: Structural Change in the Australian Trade Union Movement, 1969-85 (Report‪)‬

Existing accounts of the structural evolution of the Australian trade union movement during the twentieth century identify three distinct phases of development. Two of these are described as periods of significant change, whilst the third is given to be one of structural rigidity. The first period of change, between 1901 and 1919, was one of incomparable growth, in which the number of unions in Australia increased from 198 to 394. (1) William Howard's 'dependency theory', (2) whilst questioned by some, (3) attributes this growth to the introduction of compulsory arbitration, and the role of the early Registrars which acted promptly to register a body of registered unions to meet the 'institutional needs' of the system. The second period of change, between 1986 and 1996, in which the number of unions in Australia more than halved, falling from 326 to 132, has also been the subject of considerable discussion. The radical restructuring of the Australian trade union movement during these years is generally attributed to a massive union merger wave. (4) When we consider the two periods of change evident in the structural development of Australian trade unionism in the twentieth century there is widespread agreement as to their existence and their cause, but is this also true of the period of structural rigidity between 1920 and 1985? This phase of structural development is, for the most part, described in the literature as one of structural rigidity because the aggregate number of unions in Australia varied little during these years, declining only marginally from 388 in 1920 to 323 in 1985. The accuracy of this assumption, however, is brought into question by two smaller bodies of literature which emerged in the 1970s. The first reports significant growth in both the level of white-collar union membership and the number of white-collar unions in operation in Australia during the 1970s. The second suggests that a number of state union amalgamations occurred during the 1970s and early 1980s. (5) In light of these contradictory accounts, the intention of this article is to take a fresh look at the structural development of the Australian trade union movement during these later years of supposed structural stability. In doing so, this article presents, and attempts to explain, new data on the incidence of four distinct structural events--formations, dissolutions, mergers and breakaways--in the Australian trade union movement between 1969 and 1985. The first section of this article presents an overview of the contradictory accounts of structural change that currently exist in the Australian literature pertaining to the 1970s and 1980s, some of which extend back in time to the formative years of the arbitral system. The second section outlines the 'structural events approach' and reports, and attempts to provide an explanation for, data on the incidence of union formations, dissolutions, mergers and breakaways. Conflicting Accounts of Structural Development: 1969-85