Unions and Community

** Featured Research**

The Implications for Victorian Low Paid Workers of Changes in Industrial Relations Legislation

The purpose of the study is to identify the impact of the WorkChoices legislation on the employment conditions and entitlements of low paid workers.  Specifically, the study will identify the effect of the changes on wages, working hours, employment entitlements, job security, work intensity and workplace health and safety.  Additionally, the study will examine changes in employment conditions across five localities: CBD, suburban fringe, sea/tree change, rural and less favoured region.  The study is being partially funded by the Victorian Office of the Workplace Rights Advocate which is required to monitor and track the impact of WorkChoices, particularly with respect to women, young people and the low paid.

The study will involve a survey of low paid workers across the five localities exploring changes in terms and conditions of employments (that is, what changed, when and why). This will be followed a series of semi-structured interviews with low paid workers in each locality in order to explore issues raise in the survey in greater depth.

Researchers

Dr Sandra Cockfield, sandra.cockfield@buseco.monash.edu.au
Dr Donna Buttigieg, donna.buttigieg@buseco.monash.edu.au
Dr Marjorie Jerrard, marjorie.jerrard@buseco.monash.edu.au
Professor Al Rainnie, afr4@le.ac.uk (external, University of Leicester)

Community and Unions: Mutually Beneficial Links?

The central objective of the project is to gain an understanding of the potential for unions to form meaningful and continuous alliances with community groups. The research team seek to conduct a pilot qualitative study of union officials and community group leaders to explore a number of issues. These include: identifying how key players perceive the relationship between union and community; exploring important examples of community-union alliances; examining the conditions that encourage and prohibit community-union alliances and the perceived benefits and problems associated with collaboration. Comparisons will be made between regional and metropolitan organisations.

Researchers

Dr Donna Buttigieg, donna.buttigieg@buseco.monash.edu.au
Dr Sandra Cockfield, sandra.cockfield@buseco.monash.edu.au
Dr Marjorie Jerrard, marjorie.jerrard@buseco.monash.edu.au
Professor Al Rainnie, afr4@le.ac.uk (external, University of Leicester)

Current Research Projects

Workforce Development for the Meat Industry: An Assessment of the South Australian approach to Recruitment and Retention

Past Research Projects

Corporate Campaigning: New Strategic Unionism in Australia

Resources

Reference Lists

Scales

Useful Links

The Australian Institute of Employment Rights (AIER) is an independent body formed by respected professionals engaged as labour rights advocates, employers and their representatives, unions, academics and industrial relations practitioners.  AIER is associated with Monash University's Faculty of Business and Economics.

Call for Papers