Union responses to regulatory change: Strategies of protective layering. (December 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kaine, Sarah; Brigden, Cathy
• Other Names: Barnes Alison guest-editor.; Markey Raymond guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Economic and labour relations review. Volume 26:Number 4(2015)
• Page Start: 614
• Page End: 630
• Publication Date: 2015-12
• Subjects: Employment regulation -- informal regulation -- institutional layering -- labour law -- regulatory layering -- regulatory pluralism -- reinforcing labour regulation -- supply chain labour standards -- trade union strategy -- union campaigning; J51 -- J53 -- K31 -- L50; Australia -- Economic conditions -- Periodicals; Industrial relations -- Australia -- Periodicals; Economics -- Periodicals; Industrial relations -- Periodicals; 331
• DOI: 10.1177/1035304615615275
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1035-3046

Abstract

Changes to the Australian regulatory landscape over the past three decades of global liberalisation created regulatory uncertainty for unions. Coupled with membership decline and internal restructuring through union amalgamations, they prompted an important reorientation by unions (back) to the workplace, and precipitated different strategic decisions and organising challenges. However, the proliferation of fragmented employment relationships rendered workplace-centred organising an insufficient response. As a result, some unions experimented with ways of supplementing existing legal frameworks by other regulatory initiatives, through campaigns that resulted in the layering of regulation. In this article, we examine attempts by three unions – covering garment workers, road transport workers and aged care workers – to address the needs of members in garment homeworking, road transport and aged care in a contested regulatory environment.