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The Role ofEmployer Associations: The Australian Printing Industry 635
The Role of Employer Associations: A Survey of Members
in the Australian Printing Industry!
Kcri Spooner University of Technology, Sydney
Significant changes in the structures and processes 0/ Australian industrial
relations in recent decades have been widely researched and documented. The changes that have occurred in the structures, policies and strategies of employer associations have also been subject to some academic inquiry. Much of this research has been focused upon either how employer bodies have influenced government policy and subsequent structural reform or upon how employer
associations have sought to adapt to the implications 0/ such change. Less
attention has been directed in the academic literature to the expectations and
needs 0/ businesses with respect to their associations. This issue has significant
implications for an understanding of the dynamics 0/ Australian industrial
relations. including, but not limited to, the dynamics ofthe relationship between businesses and employer associations.
In this paper, the research fmdings of a survey conducted among members of the Printing Industry Association of Association (PIAA) are reported and analysed. The analysis suggests that efforts by employer associations to remain relevant to actual and prospective members by expanding their services into a range broader management services beyond their more traditional employment relations focus may not be what their members want.
Introduction Employer associations are organisations 'consisting predominantly of employers whose activities include participating in the determination of employment conditions on behalf of their members' (Plowman 1982) Formal employer associations arose in response to threats that labour unions and state intervention appeared to pose for employers (Sheldon and Thornthwaite, 2002: I). Australian employer associations have traditionally provided a variety or services to their members in addition to industrial relations representation including pol itical lobbying, public relations and business services including proformas and trade information, research assistance and advice, as well as training and education services (Plowman, 1982; Gladstone, 1984; Sheldon and Thomthwaite, 2002: I). However, the nature of Australian employer associations and the services provided by them has undergone significant change in recent decades.
The peak employer associations in Australia, the Business Council of Australia (BCA) and the Confederation of Australian Industry (CAl), were enthusiastic advocates of the decentralisation of industrial relations activity and the move towards more enterprise bargaining (ACCI, 1993:8-9; BCA, 1989:8; Maclntosh, 1993:59-62; McLaughlin, 1991:41- (8). Such enthusiasm remains somewhat curious in light of their traditional central role under arbitration and their limited experience in the devolved processes advocated. Indeed, were 'employer associations consigning themselves to historical oblivion by advocating their present policies regarding the industrial relations system?' (Mortimer et al, 2002:55).
636 Keri Spooner
Australian employer aSSOCIatIOnshave been viewed as traditionally reactive (Plowman, I9RR). Perhaps they saw the move to enterprise bargaining as an inevitable trend and their support flowed from a reactive stance, without a clear strategy (Mortimer et al, 2002:55). Certainly, by the mid-1990s it was clear that employer associations in Australia had a variety of different experiences associated with the systematic decentralisation of industrial relations, and that while some had led the process, others had 'suffered them with varying degrees of difficulty' (Sheldon and Thornthwaite, 1999:ix). It has been argued that the trend away from multi-employer bargaining and the declining role of arbitration in Australia caused employer associations to think creatively about their futures (Sheldon and Thornthwaite, 1999:3).
During the 1980s and 1990s, many employer associations operating in Australia restructured, merged, adopted a broader range of services and sought to become more focused on a wider range of business concerns. Some became less membership-based and more commercial by providing elective services on a 'customer' fee-paying basis. A survey conducted by Plowman and Rimmer for the Business Council of Australia (BCA) found that Australian employer associations had expanded their range of activities with deregulation (Plowman and Rimmer, 1992). The survey found that associations had expanded their activities and services in areas such as specialist and company specific services, training and lobbying for public policy changes and that many had introduced 'fee for service' activities (Plowman and Rimmer, 1992:52-4). Whether such a change in focus supports a view of employer associations as reactive organisations, or rather, as more proactive and adaptive organisations that have been stimulated by the decentralisation of the system into developing a new strategic direction, has been subject to some debate (Mortimer et al, 2002).
Although most of the literature dealing with the changing role of Australian employer associations has tended to associate their expansion of services with adaptation or reaction, Mortimer et al (2002), in their longitudinal study of several associations, identified that a contraction of services could be an adaptive strategy. In particular, they note the case of the Australian Retailers Association (RTA) and conclude 'that a return to a traditional industrial relations focus by some associations represents a proactive response to membership needs' (Mortimer et al, 2002:66).
In this paper, the results of a survey conducted among members of the Printing Industries Association of Australia (PIAA) during 2003 are reported. The survey sought to identify the issues of concern to members and the relative importance to members of services provided or potentially provided by their Association. The survey followed the release in March 2001 of a comprehensive and significant report on the state of the Australian printing industry which was funded by the PIAA, an industry consortium and the Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources. The survey reported in this paper was conducted by the PIAA to assist them to better understand and meet the needs of their members. The survey results provide useful insights to what members want of their association and thus complement the research undertaken by others which has contributed to our understanding of the changing role of Australian employer associations.
Background to the Survey The Printing Industries' Action Agenda, known as Print2I Action Agenda, was initiated by the Printing Industry Association of Australia (PIAA) and funded by the Commonwealth
63 ~ Keri Spooner
employees, Medium being twenty to ninety-nine employees and large being 100 plus employees. A Likert scale of 1-7 was used for most questions as research indicates a 7-point scale tends to provide a more valid response. Most questions required respondents to indicate their response on a scale of 1 (representing 'to no extent' or not at all') through to 7 (representing 'extremely important' or 'significantly'. To access whether an issue was either important or significant, a response of 4 was taken as neutral and responses of 5,6 and 7 were summed. If more than 50 per cent of respondents indicated that a factor or issue was ofa 5- value, it has been analysed to be significant.
In mid May 2003, 270 survey questionnaires were posted to PIAA members from all States, across all identified sectors of the printing industry and of differing sizes in terms of the number of staff employed. The mail posting was followed up by the use of phone calls and ernails to surveyed organisations. By mid-June seventy-nine completed questionnaires had been returned representing a response rate of 29.25 per cent. The survey forms were coded and filed so as to protect the anonymity of respondents.
Overview of Survey Results Many of the issues surveyed concerned aspects of respondents' businesses which are not directly related to employment relations issues and only those of relevance to the role of an employer association will be discussed here. As no significant difference was found in the responses of members by State at a significance level of 0.05, the results are presented for all respondents rather than by State.
Survey respondents Respondents were spread throughout the identified industry sectors providing the range of identified products, processes and services. The largest identified sector was that of 'General Commercial Printing' (30.4%) and a total of 40.5 per cent of respondents identified that they did provide 'General Commercial Printing' 2. Results also show that over 80 per cent of respondents employ less than fifty staff and that more than 50 per cent of respondents had an annual turnover of less than $3m in the last financial year (Q2 and 3 Part A). Respondents also operate across all of the States except Tasmania although the largest grouping of respondents came from South Australia (Q 6 and 7 Part A). Although 86 per cent of respondents have their business located in an Australian capital city, over 77 per cent of respondents provide services for customers in regional areas and in other States (Q 8 and 9 Part A).
Nature and health of business The survey results concerning key aspects of business performance are generally consistent with the findings of Print21. In light of issues raised in Print21 concerning the challenges arising from e-business and globalisation, the high percentage of respondents identifying with 'general commercial printing' services could be seen as potentially problematic for the industry. Seventy-seven per cent of respondents stated that their business was totally focused on the domestic market (Q 10 Part A) which also contrasts with the recommendations of Print21 concerning the need for Australian printing businesses to become export oriented. (Q 11 Part A). The majority of respondents did not identify with experiencing the nature of threats identified in Print21 and specified in the questionnaire nor were they engaged in activity aimed at securing niche or global markets through e-business, as recommended in
The Role a/Employer Associations: The Australian Printing Industry 639
Print21. However, consistent with the industry problems identified in Print21, a significant ()().~ per cent of respondents identified that they had made major investments over the past live years aimed at substantially changing and upgrading the nature of their infrastructure as well as considerable investments aimed at significantly updating existing technology (Q Part A). Ninety-five per cent of respondents indicated that that were utilising their technology at less than full capacity while 25 per cent of respondents indicated less than 75 per cent uti Iisation of capacity (Q 15 Part A).
As identified in Print21 and its accompanying background papers, such expenditure on technology may be problematic for the industry. This notion is supported by the survey data concerning profitability, profit margin, return on assets and turnover is considered. The majority of respondents indicated overall that there had been no significant movement in any of these measures over the past five years except for turnover which had increased for a majority of respondents (Q 13 Part A). This is consistent with the problems of excess capacity identified in the PIAA Annual Report. (2003: 5)
What respondents want from their association Respondents were asked to rate on a scale of I (not at all important) to 7 (extremely important) the importance to them of a list of services provided by the PIAA (Q16 Part A). The cumulative importance (the percentage of5-7 scores) of the services rated by respondents is shown in Table I. The results indicate clearly that there are a number of services provided by the PIAA which the respondents rate as being very important to them. The results also show that while the more traditional association role of assisting members in employee and industrial relations matters remains of greatest importance to the respondents, the role of information provider is also extremely important.
Tahle I (AQ16): The Importance To You Of The Following Services Provided By The Printing Industries Association Cumulative lmportantance (Total 0[5-7 scores) Assist in Employee and Industrial Relations Keep you informed Provide industry trend information Advise! assist! lobby govt grants Industry training representation to govt, others Advice and govt representation on environment services Training and professional development Provide taxation advice
62% 59% 52% 481 1" 38% 23°1£
In Part B of the survey questionnaire, respondents were asked to indicate the importance for the future of their business of receiving quality information concerning a range of listed issues. The issues were organised into ten groupings and within each group were a number of specified issues. In Table 2, the highest ten mean scores for all issues are presented. This information is of considerable interest. Although the highest mean scores are associated with employment relations issues, it can be seen that taxation matters and issues concerned with market opportunities also scored very highly. In the context of other responses, this suggests
The Role a/Employer Associations: The Australian Printing Industry 641
(75.()%»): corporate tax reform (73.4%); size and growth in markets and sectors (72.2%); Environment Protection Agency (EPA) e.g. information on obligations under new environment legislation (69.6%); developing new markets (68.4%); E-Commerce security (65.WYC,): and federal government industry policy (62%): pressures to utilise environmental friendly alternatives e.g. reduction in green house gases: inks / chemicals / solvent usage; waste minimisation / recycling (58.3%).
Conclusions The survey results discussed in this paper are based upon only seventy-nine responses and must therefore be viewed with some caution. However, the findings concerning aspects of respondents' businesses demonstrate a consistency with the issues identified in Print21. The survey results also indicate that some major concerns identified in Print21, including the need for businesses to focus on global and niche markets, may not been addressed by survey respondents and the majority of respondents are working harder to maintain profitability.
The survey results demonstrate that there is a range of services provided by the PIAA which arc valued highly by their members but industrial relations or workplace relations concerns remain of paramount importance to members. These results challenge the notion that changes in the Australian industrial relations system necessarily require employer associations to adapt by expanding the range of services they provide. Although most of the literature dealing with the changing role of Australian employer associations has tended to associate their expansion of services with adaptation or reaction, Mortimer et a1 (2002) concluded that a focus on 'traditional' industrial issues may well represent a rational response to a current membership need, rather than a reactive stance. Certainly, the results of the PIAA membership survey indicate the importance for members of their Association's provision of industrial relations services.
The results of the PIAA survey illustrate the importance for employer associations of surveying their members to ascertain what is important for them. While employer associations may choose to adopt a leadership role in directing perceived needed change among their members, their own survival may depend more upon meeting the expectations of their members or at least engaging in a mixed strategy of modifying whilst meeting members' needs.
Notes I. Sincere thanks to the Printing Industries Association of Australia for allowing the use of their survey data in this paper. All interpretations of data, errors and omissions contained in this paper are attributable only to the author of this paper.
- That is, although 30.4 per cent of respondents identified their businesses as 'best fitting' the 'general commercial printing' sector, a further 10.1 per cent of respondents identified that they did provide general commercial printing services.
Bibliogr-aphy ACCI (1993) Industrial Review, 98, Melbourne. I3CA (I 9S9) , Enterprise Based Bargaining Units: A Better Way of Working', Industrial Relations Study Commission, Melbourne.
642 Kcri Spooner
Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources (200 I) Printing Industries' Action Agenda (Print21 Action Agenda). released March 200 I; see hIIp:!lart. ianmc.com.au/print21/ Gladstone. A. (1984) 'Employers Associations In Comparative Perspective: Functions And Activities', Windmuller, J. and Gladstone, A. (eds) Employers Associations And Industrial Relations: A Comparative Study. Oxford: Oxford University Press: 24-43. Macintosh. M. (1993) 'Australian Industrial Relations in 1992: Another Turning Point?', Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, Sydney: Australian Human Resources Institute. Mcl.aughlin, P. (1991), 'Enterprise Bargaining: Making Australia Competitive' Economic and Labour Relations Review, 4"1-68, Sydney: UNSW. Mortimer, D., Still, L. and Bond, S. (2002) 'Employer Associations in the Contemporary Employment Relations Landscape: Where To Now', Employment Relations Record, 2 (1): 53-69. Plowman. D. (1982) 'Employer Associations in New South Wales', Journal of Industrial Relations, 24 (3), September. Plowman, D. (1988) 'Employer Associations and Industrial Reactivity', Labour and Industry, June. Plowman. D. and Rimmer, M. (1992) 'Bargaining Structure, Award Respondency and Employer Associations', UNSW Studies in Australian Industrial Relations, 33, Industrial Relations Research Centre, UNSW. Printing Industries Association of Australia (PIAA) (2003) 78 th^ Annual Report: 2002. Sheldon, P. and Thornthwaite, L. (eds) (1999) Employer Associations and Industrial Relations Change, St Leonards: Allen and Unwin. Sheldon. P. and Thornthwaite, L. (2002) 'Business Or Association'? The Strategic Response or Employer Associations To The Decentralisation Of Bargaining In Australia', IFSAM 2002 Conference Proceedings, Gold Coast Queensland Australia, July, (Proceedings CD).
First published in 2003 by International Employment Relations Association C/- School of Management University of Technology, Sydney PO Box 123 Broadway NSW 2007 Australia
ISBN 1 861662033
Printed by University of Western Sydney, Printing Services
11
Preface
The u" annual conference of the International Employment Relations Association (IERA)
took place at the University of Greenwich Business School in London, England. This was the
first lERA annual conference to take place outside of the Asia-Pacific Region and marked a
historic coming of age for the Association. It was decided at the 2003 conference that IERA
should become a truly international body and the constitution was changed at the AGM to
allow regional IERAs to be established in Europe, Australasia, Asia and North America, each
with their own officers and annual conference. There will continue to be an annual
international conference.
The 2004 conference took place from 8th^ to 11 th July at the University of Greenwich Business
School's magnificent home in the Old Royal Naval College on the Greenwich World
Heritage Site beside the Thames. This architectural ensemble is probably the finest set of
historic buildings in England, designed by Sir Christopher Wren in the early 18th^ century and
painted by Canaletto and Turner amongst others. Delegates were also lucky to experience
some distinctly non-English weather with hot sunny days for the length of the conference.
The conference was attended by almost 100 delegates and guests from around thirteen
countries. The theme- for the 2003 conference was 'Employment Relations in the 21 st
Century: Regulation, deregulation and re-regulation'. Some seventy papers.were given over
the three days of the conference under various themes - worker representation and union
renewal; flexible work and workers; new forms of management/union relations; public sector
employment relations; equal opportunities; training and development; privatisation and
deregulation; HRM and knowledge management; and employment relations in Asia.
The conference opened with a wine reception where delegates were welcomed by the Pro-
Vice Chancellor of the University, Professor David Wills. Delegates were serenaded by
musicians from the Trinity College of Music that shares the Greenwich site with the
university. The conference started with a plenary session given by Professor Chris Brewster
of Henley Management College on flexible working practices in Europe. Another plenary
session on the Thursday morning brought together speakers from four organisations to give
their views on current developments in British and global employment relations. These
included Peter Brannen from the ILO, Sarah Veale from the TUC, Mike Emmott from the
Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and Peter Burgess from the IDS European
Report.
The conference dinner on Thursday evening was held in the Trafalgar, one of the most
famous old inns along the Thames. The delegates were again serenaded but this time by the
Andrea Vicari jazz trio. The conference finished on the Friday morning with a plenary
session by Professor Anna Pollert, Professor of Employment Relations at Greenwich, who
took as her theme 'Women, work and equal opportunities in post-Communist transition'.
Special thanks must go to Dr Susan Corby and Dr Celia Stanworth from Greenwich's
academic staff who organised the event and Gill Haxell and Diane Barnett for the very
successful administration of the conference. I would also like to thank those Greenwich staff
who provided their services as referees for the abstracts submitted. Thanks are also due to
Professor Les Johnson, Director of the Business School, for his support for the conference.
111
CONTENTS
PREFACE III
LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS x
Employee Involvement and Worker's Perceptions of Union Effectiveness in 'Partnership' Organisations: Evidence from the UK National Health Service Vidu Badigannavar 1
A Portrait of Labour Market Disadvantage: The Case of Fairfield's Migrant Professionals Lyn Bain, Dennis Mortimer and Sue Bond 14
Linking Skills Development to Employment Opportunities: The Parramatta Skills Development and Employment Generation Project Lyn Bain, Dennis Mortimer, Meg Smith and Sue Bond 31
Evaluation of the UK Government's Programme of Employment Relations Legislation Mark Beatson and Beatrice Parrish 47
Employment and Work Orientation in the Cultural Sector Zuleika Beaven 64
Call Centre Evolution and Development in Australia: From Corporate Restructuring to Bangalore John Burgess and Julia Connell 73
Enterprise Bargaining in the Australian Textile and Hospitality Industries: Some Small Business Case Studies Grant Cairn cross, Jeremy Buultjens and Melissa Crowe 83
Argentina: A New Global Model for Social Movement Unionism'? Lesley Catchpowle and Celia Stanworth 95
Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire'? A Union's Defence of the Career Public Service 1980-
Linda Colley 112
Anti/Non-Unionism: A Case Study-Based Discursive Analysis Peter Cook and Teri McConville 125
v
Flexible Working, Workforce Flexibility and Distance Education: Meeting 'Gendered Expectations'
Ron Crawford 140
The' Soft' Option in Employment Systems? An Analysis of HRM in Transformed and New Workplaces
Christina Cregan, Timothy Bartram and Stewart Johnston 168
The Regulation of Employment Relationships in a Neo-Liberal Environment
Joanna Cullinane 191
Propagating the Unfair Dismissal Myth: Comparative Employment Protection Law Developments in Australia, Italy, South Korea and the UK
Alex de Ruyter and Peter Waring 204
Unions and Tangible Investments: A Review and New Evidence in France
Chris Doucouliagos and Patrice Laroche 221
Employment Agency Workers and Employment Standards: Regulation and Liberalisation in Europe
Janet Druker 239
Moving Beyond Disciplinary Boundaries: Some Guiding Principles for a Reflexive Approach to Teaching Employment Relations and Organisation Studies
Fernanda Duarte and Anneke Fitzgerald 251
Doctors and Nurses Working Together: The Changing Identity Precincts in Health
Anneke Fitzgerald and Gregory Teal 259
Practical Men and Registration: Plumbing and Building Apprenticesin New Zealand Through Regulation
Barry Foster 270
Managing Diversity in Organisations: Easy to Talk About but Difficult to Do
Carley Foster and Lynette Harris 281
Gender Differences in Enforcing Employment Rights
Margaret Fox 293
The Use of Flexible Work Examined:The Need for a Contingency Based Approach
Stijn Gryp, Geert Van Hootegem and Anne Delarue 302
The Relationship Between Job Security and Fearless Advice? Evidence from Councils in Victoria, Australia and Penang, Malaysia
Ali Haidar, Chris Nyland and Len Pullin 315
VI
Gendered Access to Employee Participation: The Impact of Part-Time Employment in Australian Workplaces Raymond Markey and Ann Hodgkinson 486
Rail Privatisation in the UK: Back to the Future? Hamish Mathieson and Andrew Pendleton 499
Regulatory Change: Some Implications for Australian Aviation Jim Mitchell 510
Labour Hire and Casualisation: An Industry Case Study Terri Mylett 522
Professional Malaise: A New Zealand Condition? Warren Nuttall and Romuald Rudzki 535
Dismissing a Departmental Secretary: An Overt Exercise of Power in Public Employment Len Pullin and Ali Haidar 548
Relations Between Fractions of Management in an NHS Trust Michael Pye and Mary Broomfield 561
Males and Early Childhood Care and Education: Student, Staff and Parent Survey Evidence Andrea Quinn, Michael Lyons and Jennifer Sums ion 575
Employment Protection Systems: Reassessing Statutory Provisions and Labour Market Flexibility Mark John Roberts and Alex Norman Roberts 597
The Use of Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software in Employment Relations Research: A Case Study of the Australian and New Zealand Telecommunications Sectors Peter Ross 611
Organising Front-Line Service Workers: Evidence from Four Union Campaigns Melanie Simms 622
The Role of Employer Associations: A Survey of Members in the Australian Printing Industry Keri Spooner 635
Improving People Management Strategies in Chinese Hospitals: A Case Study in the Sichuan Province Pauline Stanton and Pei Likun and Liu Yi 643
Vlll
Sharing and Caring: The Dilemma of Public and Private Organisational Effectiveness Peter Townsend and Sugumar Mariappanadar 657
Is ;\ Ifirmative Action Capable of Instigating Positive Employment Outcomes for Womcn Employed in Female Dominated Industries? Rosalind Tregurtha 669
Is the Democratic Party the Labor Patty of the U.S.? A Commentary Leo Troy 685
Employment Protection in Ireland Joe Wallace and Michelle 0 'Sullivan 695
The Impact of the Minimum Wage on the Hairdressing Sector: A Special Case? Geoff' White, Janet Druker and Celia Stanworth 707
Organising Strategies in the lnfonnal Economy Mark Wilding 725
Trust, lntrafirm, and Supplier Relations Geoffrey Wood and Chris Brewster 735
The Effects of Age Discrimination Legislation on Workplace Practice: A New Zealand Case Study Geoffrey Wood, Mark Harcourt and Sondra Harcourt 755
The Impact of Economic Reform and Associated Changes in Regulatory and Institutional Arrangements on the Role of Trade Unions in the People's Republic of China Jefl Wrath all 771
Critical Issues in Organisational Commitment in Taiwan: Strategic HRM for the Higher Education and Insurance Sector Wei-Kong Wu 778
Proposed Holistic Perspective in the Knowledge Management Framework Jen-Te Yang and Peter Standen 791
Governance Structures for the Employment Relationship: A Conceptual and Analytical Framework Stefan Zagelmeyer 800
Beyond Regulation, Reflective Commitment: Developing a Win-Win Approach in a Numerical Flexibility Strategy Mary Zeppou 813
IX
