The Federated Shipwrights' and Ship Constructors' Association of Australia was an Australian

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

which existed between 1916 and 1976. It represented shipwrights and

boatbuilder Boat building is the design and construction of boats and their systems. This includes at a minimum a hull, with propulsion, mechanical, navigation, safety and other systems as a craft requires. Construction materials and methods Wood W ...

s in the

shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befo ...

and ship repair industries, as well as sea-going shipwrights aboard vessels in the merchant navy.

History

Shipwrights were one of the first craft groups to be organised after the settlement of Australia, with the ''Shipwrights United Friends Society'' formed in 1829 to represent shipwrights in Sydney (then part of the

Colony of New South Wales The Colony of New South Wales was a colony of the British Empire from 1788 to 1901, when it became a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. At its greatest extent, the colony of New South Wales included the present-day Australian states of New ...

). Other unions were soon formed in the other colonies, including the ''Port Phillip Shipwrights Society'', the ''Port Adelaide Shipwrights Society'' and the ''Brisbane Shipwrights Provident Union'', while the Sydney union was renamed the ''Shipwrights Provident Union of New South Wales''. After

federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

these small, local unions amalgamated to form a national organisation, which was registered federally in January 1916 as the Federated Shipwrights of Australia. Just a few months later, in September 1916, it changed to the Federated Shipwrights' Ship Constructors' & Boat Builders' Association of Australia. By the end of 1917, in what was a tumultuous period, the union had changed again, this time to the Federated Shipwrights Ship Constructors Naval Architects Ships Draughtsmen and Boat Builders of Australia. The union operated under this name until 1933 when it succumbed to a further name change: the Federated Shipwrights’ & Ship Constructors’ Association of Australia. The union published a journal titled ''Slipway''. Operating until December 1976, the Federated Shipwrights’ & Ship Constructors’ Association amalgamated with the Amalgamated Metal Workers’ Union to form the

Amalgamated Metal Workers’ & Shipwrights’ Union The Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU), or more fully the Automotive, Food, Metals, Engineering, Printing and Kindred Industries Union, is an Australian trade union. The AMWU represents a broad range of workers in the manufacturing se ...

. At the time of the merger 247 of the approximately 1,500 members of the Shipwrights Association were employed as sea-going shipwrights (also known as ship's carpenters). As the various maritime unions objected to the AMWU expanding its coverage to ships' crews, these members were instead transferred to the Merchant Service Guild (later renamed the Australian Maritime Officers Union), with the transfer completed by 1978.

References

{{Reflist Defunct trade unions of Australia Trade unions established in 1916 Trade unions disestablished in 1976 Shipbuilding trade unions 1916 establishments in Australia Craft unions Shipbuilding in Australia