Good While it Lasted: The Position and Prospects of Australian Unions in 1993

Since the Australian union movement's representational peak in the mid 1970s, the industrial, economic and political landscape has considerably changed While the election of the Hawke Government in 1983 provided much cause for optimism among the union movement, the experience of the 1980s decade has proven to be cathartic. This paper examines the union movement's response to the changes of 1980s; examines the development of the Accord and details the ongoing implementation of strategies for its restructuring.