The ''Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904'' (Cth) was an
Act of the
Parliament of Australia
The Parliament of Australia (officially the Federal Parliament, also called the Commonwealth Parliament) is the legislature, legislative branch of the government of Australia. It consists of three elements: the monarch (represented by the ...
, which established the
Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
The Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration was an Australian court that operated from 1904 to 1956 with jurisdiction to hear and arbitrate interstate industrial disputes, and to make awards. It also had the judicial functions of i ...
, besides other things, and sought to introduce the rule of law in
industrial relations
Industrial relations or employment relations is the multidisciplinary academic field that studies the employment relationship; that is, the complex interrelations between employers and employees, labor/trade
unions, employer organizations, ...
in Australia. The Act received
royal assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in oth ...
on 15 December 1904.
The Act applied to
industrial disputes “extending beyond the limits of any one State, including disputes in relation to employment upon State railways, or to employment in industries carried on by or under the control of the Commonwealth or a State or any public authority constituted under the Commonwealth or a State”.
The Act was amended many times and was superseded by the ''Industrial Relations Act 1988'' and was repealed by the ''Industrial Relations (Consequential Provisions) Act 1988'' with effect on 1 March 1989. The ''Industrial Relations Act 1988'' was itself replaced by the ''
Workplace Relations Act 1996
The ''Workplace Relations Act 1996'' was an Australian law regarding workplace conditions and rights passed by the Howard government after it came into power in 1996. It replaced the previous Labor Government's ''Industrial Relations Act 1988' ...
''.
Background
Constitutional basis
The Commonwealth’s power to make the law is based on
section 51(xxxv) of the Constitution, which gives the Commonwealth power to make laws "in relation to
conciliation and
arbitration for the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes extending beyond the limits of any one state".
More controversially, the scope of the Act was “extended” to include disputes “...in relation to employment upon State railways, or to employment in industries carried on by or under the control of the Commonwealth or a State or any public authority constituted under the Commonwealth or a State...”. It excluded disputes in “...any agricultural, viticultural, horticultural, or dairying pursuit...”.
History
The Conciliation and Arbitration Bill (1903 & 1904) was drafted by
Charles Kingston
Charles Cameron Kingston (22 October 1850 – 11 May 1908) was an Australian politician. From 1893 to 1899 he was a radical liberal Premier of South Australia, occupying this office with the support of Labor, which in the House of Assembly ...
, Australia's pioneer of
compulsory arbitration
Compulsion may refer to:
* Compulsive behavior, a psychological condition in which a person does a behavior compulsively, having an overwhelming feeling that they must do so.
* Obsessive–compulsive disorder, a mental disorder characterized by ...
, drawing on
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
's ''
Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1894
The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1894 was a piece of industrial relations legislation passed by the Parliament of New Zealand in 1894. Enacted by the Liberal Government of New Zealand, it was the world's first compulsory system of ...
''. Kingston was a Minister in Deakin's Protectionist Government, which was supported by the Labour Party. In July 1903, Kingston resigned suddenly from the Deakin government in a fit of anger over the opposition of
John Forrest and
Edmund Barton to an extension of conciliation and arbitration to British and foreign seamen engaged in the Australian coastal trade.
The scope of the legislation was very controversial at the time, resulting in changes of governments of
Alfred Deakin (
Protectionist
Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...
),
Chris Watson (
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
), and
George Reid
Sir George Houston Reid, (25 February 1845 – 12 September 1918) was an Australian politician who led the Reid Government as the fourth Prime Minister of Australia from 1904 to 1905, having previously been Premier of New South Wales fr ...
(
Free Trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econ ...
). In April 1904, Watson and Deakin fell out over the issue of extending the scope of the Conciliation and Arbitration Bill to cover state public servants. Labour members withdrew their support for Deakin, leading to the resignation of Deakin’s Government. Reid refused to form government, leading to the formation of the first Labour government led by Watson. Watson's government lasted only four months and was succeeded in August 1904 by Reid's which agreed to Labour's amendment to cover State government employees, and the Bill was passed with Labour's support.
The Act
The main objects of the Act were:
Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904
s.2
* to prevent lock-out
A lockout is a work stoppage or denial of employment initiated by the management of a company during a labour dispute. In contrast to a strike, in which employees refuse to work, a lockout is initiated by employers or industry owners.
Lockouts ...
s and strikes in relation to industrial disputes
* to constitute a Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration
The Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration was an Australian court that operated from 1904 to 1956 with jurisdiction to hear and arbitrate interstate industrial disputes, and to make awards. It also had the judicial functions of i ...
having jurisdiction for the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes
* to provide for the exercise of the jurisdiction of the Court by conciliation with a view to amicable agreement between the parties
* in default of amicable agreement between the parties, to provide for the exercise of the jurisdiction of the Court by equitable award
* to enable States to refer industrial disputes to the Court, and to permit the working of the Court and of State Industrial Authorities in aid of each other
* to facilitate and encourage the organization of representative bodies of employers and of employees and the submission of industrial disputes to the Court by organizations, and to permit representative bodies of employers and of employees to be declared organizations for the purposes of this Act
* to provide for the making and enforcement of industrial agreements between employers and employees in relation to industrial disputes.
See also
* Australian labour law
References
{{reflist
Further sources
National Archives of Australia
A fair go – a win for the workers
Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904 (Cth)
National Archives of Australia
Documenting Democracy: Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904
See also
*WorkChoices
WorkChoices was the name given to changes made to the federal industrial relations laws in Australia by the Howard Government in 2005, being amendments to the ''Workplace Relations Act 1996'' by the ''Workplace Relations Amendment (Work Choice ...
*Harvester Judgment
''Ex parte H.V. McKay'',''Ex parte H.V. McKay'(1907) 2 CAR 1 commonly referred to as the ''Harvester case'', is a landmark Australian labour law decision of the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration. The case arose under the ''Exc ...
1904 in Australian law
Acts of the Parliament of Australia
Arbitration law
1904 in politics
Industrial agreements