
Issue No 84		16 February 2001

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Young Workers: The Wage Gypsies

Unions need to change the way they look at the very notion of 'work' if they want to attract young people to the movement, according to Australian Centre for Industrial Relations Research and Training director John Buchanan.

Addressing the Labor Council's seminar on 'Organising Young Workers in a Hostile Environment', Buchanan released statistics showing a dramatic shift in the make-up of the labour market.

Buchanan says the old structures of employment have 'dissolved' from the 1960s, where the vast majority of men workers full-time and most women stayed in the home to rear families.

Increases in part-time work have jumped from 10 per cent in 197 to 25 per cent in the late nineties, while casual workers have risen from 10 per cent to 26 per cent. This means the majority of the workforce is no longer employed on a full-time basis.

Amongst young workers, a staggering 25.2 per cent of workers aged 20 to 24 change jobs every year. And with 25 per cent of workers in this age group studying as well as working, it was no longer even accurate to portray them as 'workers' in the traditional sense.

"What we are witnessing is a collapse of the notion of the 'wage earner," Buchanan says. "Instead we have a new generation of workers who are more akin to wage gypsies.

While unionisation levels are low, Buchanan cited figures showing a growing disenchantment amongst young workers. Forty per cent of part-time workers say they wish they were working longer hours.

And more pointedly, while 56 per cent of workers aged 15 to 20 say they trust the boss, this number plummets to 44 per cent in the 21 to 24 age bracket.

But it's not all bad news, citing Labor Council survey results, the idea of joining trade unions is still attractive to the young, Buchanan says 61 per cent of the 18-24 group say they are attracted to unions - although this drops to 44 per cent in the 26-34 demographic.

Unions Part of the Power Structure

Earlier, the seminar heard a keynote address from Newcastle University academics David Rowe and Stephen Le Queux, who have undertaken studty into the attitudes of young people towards trade unions.

There focus group work, undertaken for the Newcastle Trades Hall last year, provide a sobering backdrop for organising efforts.

In focus group discussions they found young people regard trade unions as part of the power structure - little different to their bosses.

"Many associated them with big beard men working in manual occupations," Le Queux said. This was compounded by fears they would be victimised by their employer if they joined a trade union.

The Newcastle University academics suggested a series of initiatives to arrest the fall in membership levels among young workers:

These include:

- improved information and communication tailored to young workers

- the establishment of Specialist Youth Units within individual trade unions.

- special focus on the situation of young women, particularly with regard to sexual harassment.

- community and grass-roots information campaigns to counter the negative images of trade unions in the mass media.

- taking a more active role in the provision of education and training services.

- direct involvement in brokering job opportunities for young people

- review of union fee structures for part-time and casual workers.

Outcomes to Organising Committee

The Labor Council's Organising Committee will meet to discuss the outcomes of the day's conference and approve industry-specific action plans for young workers.

Labor Council assistant secretary John Robertson says the committee will consider proposals developed in workshops focussing on blue-collar, service and IT workers.

These will provide a focus for Labor Council's work in assisting affiliates with their organising efforts over the next year, with all programs to be re-evaluated in 12 months time.

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Issue 84 contents

Interview: Life After Wartime
After ten years representing the interests of the labour movement in Parliament, Jeff Shaw is back at the bar. And loving it.

Legal: Why the Freeloaders Should Pay
Michael Costa explains why service fees are not only fair - they are economically rational.

Organising: Young Activists Bask in Union Summer
Sydney students have spent three weeks of their summer holidays experiencing on-the-ground work with unions.

Unions: Things Are Looking Up On The Dock
After six years as a call centre worker, Marios Ellas has joined the union movement. Here's his first impressions.

History: Trades Hall � The Royal Connection
Republic, who needs it when we have the Trades Hall decreed by Royal Imprimatur? So tug your forelock as work commences to restore the building.

International: Greetings from Hong Kong
Chan Wai-Keung from the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions outlined the challenges facing Hong Kong workers.

Politics: One Nation - The Old Labor Link
The resurgence in One Nation in the WA election has the pundits again reaching for the tea-leaves. But are they pouring from the wrong pot?

Review: Elect the Ambassador
Labor frontbencher Duncan Kerr unveils his vision for a new international democracy.

Satire: Man Buys Big Issue for the Articles
A Melbourne businessman claims his recent purchase of the "Big Issue" was due to his interest in the magazine's editorial content.

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» BHP Contracts Battle Goes Back to the Coalface

» Newcastle Mill to be Union Project

» Government Must Lead on Casual Leave

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