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| Issue No 27 |  |
20 August 1999 |
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HistoryAustralian Unions and Industrial Action 1788-1900
A project is under way to compile a comprehensive record of unions, informal worker organisation and strikes from the period of European settlement to 1900 using a specially designed computer database.
The database includes a file on each union or instance of worker organisation as well as industrial action, court litigation and political lobbying they became involved in. So far the database contains records of more than 2,200 unions and informal worker alliance and it is expected that the figure will exceed 6,000 when completed. According to the chief investigator, Professor Michael Quinlan of the University of New Wales, informal alliances of workers were important but have often been overlooked by labour historians. Most strikes before 1860 did not involve a union and the same applied to some very large disputes after this date such as a revolt by navvies building the South East Queensland railway in 1866. Further, many unions formed during the 19th century survived only a short period, indicating the difficulty of building a cohesively organised labour movement. On the other hand, by 1890 the Australian union movement had a combined membership of over 150,000 and could claim to be perhaps the most strongly organised union movement in the world at that time. Professor Quinlan said the database should provide insights into Australian unions that are relevant to the current difficult climate. The database will form the basis for a book on union and worker organisation in Australia. It is also planned to eventually put the database on CD ROM format so that it can made available to unions and libraries. The software and technical support for the database was undertaken by Peter Akers (formerly of Griffith University). Peter has built the database in a way that makes it comparatively easy to use. This will obviously benefit unionists and others who may wish to use it in the future.
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   Interview: Stepping Up To The PlateACTU secretary-in-waiting Greg Combet talks about his report on international trade union trends and the need to adapt for the future. Work/Time/Life: The Good Type of Wharf Security The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has locked in better job security for casuals as part of its collective agreement with P&O Ports. International: Venezuela Warned By Global Labour GroupVenezuela's new Constituent Assembly has drafted a decree providing for the dissolution of the country's national trade union organisation, the CTV. Legal: Politically Motivated Case Against Unionist FailsA politically motivated extortion case against Eric Wicker, a long-time trade unionist on the Port Kembla waterfront has failed. Republic: Direct Election Republicans who say YES � and MORE!Despairing at the sight of Ted Mack and Phil Cleary fronting for Kerry Jones and the Australians for A Constitutional Monarchy? Appalled at the disastrous strategy and paralysis of the Australian Republican Movement? A significant group of Republicans has an answer for you! Unions: Technology for the TimesNew technology offers exciting opportunities which help union growth, according to this extract from Unions@Work. History: Australian Unions and Industrial Action 1788-1900A project is under way to compile a comprehensive record of unions, informal worker organisation and strikes from the period of European settlement to 1900 using a specially designed computer database. Review: Stage Left! - Workers Theatre Hits the Mark'Rare' is the word on the Melbourne Workers Theatre production, 'Who's Afraid of the Working Class?' currently touring the eastern states of Australia. Satire: Australia's Most EarnestStrewth magazine scours the cultural landscape for its inaugural Earnest Bastard of the Year Award.
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