The term 'parties to the award' is commonly used in the language of the federal industrial relations system. Used as the title of this publication, it encompasses both employee and employer organisations operating in the federal system. It also implies a beginning - 1904 (the start of Commonwealth arbitration under the Conciliation and Arbitration Act) and to a lesser extent an ending - 1994 (with non-union enterprise bargaining going on under the Industrial Relations Reform Act 1993, and the culmination of the 'super union' amalgamations).

The two main sections of the book (to be used in conjunction) are firstly, a set of 42 pedigree charts tracking registration, name changes and amalgamations of federally registered trade unions, employer associations, and their peak national and state councils from 1904 (and in some cases before). Secondly, there is a cross-referenced alphabetical directory which also tracks organisational change and illuminates where records of federal industrial organisations are available for research in archival institutions around Australia.

The charts are divided into industry sectors - trade unions based on the Australian Council of Trade Unions formula and employers based loosely on the Standard Industrial Classification system. Similar charts exist for peak national and state councils.

The location of records available for research in archival institutions and the contact address of these institutions is noted in Parties to the Award. Specific details of provenance, record type/s, date range, volume and means of access should be obtained from the relevant institution. Where the location of an organisation's records is not noted in the book it is advisable to contact the organisation in its current form, if still operating. Please note that punctuation in the charts and directory has been minimised.

Parties to the Award contributes to the project Reshaping Australia's Institutions: Towards and Beyond 2001 (an ongoing initiative of the Research School of Social Sciences, The Australian National University) by providing a framework for further research on the institutions of the labour market and business.

I owe a great debt to everyone at the Noel Butlin Archives Centre, without whose support, assistance and guidance this book would not have been written. Foremost, my thanks to Maureen Purtell for her guidance and support throughout the project (and also for the book's title!). I am grateful to Michael Saclier for publishing the book and for his assistance with sections of it. Thanks to Ewan Maidment for his advice, for his work in compiling a number of the charts, researching the organisations and writing part of the introduction to research using archives. Thanks also for use of his invaluable card index to trade union archives around Australia. My thanks to Emma Jolley for her advice, for compiling a number of the charts and for researching parts of the directory. I am grateful to Ben Natali for his enthusiastic support and assistance. Thanks to Carol McNally for her help. Thanks also to Barry Howarth, who originally created the card index 'List of Organisations registered under the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904' upon which the charts are based.

Thank you to the many archivists, librarians and others who responded to our survey and provided additional information as required: Roger Andre (SLSA), Jim Andrighetti (ML), Don Boadle (CSU), Edward Bridle (UNE), Patrick Brownlee (WUA), Chris Coggin (SAWA), Loen Doube (NILS), Sue Fairbanks (UMA), Anne Gill (SAWA), Shirley King (UTA), Jock Murphy (LAT), Deanna Nikolettos (AASA), Nigel Patterson (LaTrobe University), Ian Pearce (AOT), Joan Price (LaTrobe University), Brian Randall (JOL), Denis Rowe (AL), Glen Schwinghammer (NLA), Jennifer Sloggett (NPL), M. Sofield (OA), Frank Strahan (UMA), John Winterbottom (CSU) and Jenni Wright (NTA).

Thanks also to the helpful people at the Australian Industrial Registry - Carol Lynch, Rob Pfieffer, Maja Mezek and others who assisted with our enquiries. My gratitude to the many industrial relations practitioners who provided information where necessary about their organisations, and also to the many researchers whom I cornered in the NBAC reading room seeking information.

I am grateful to Don Rawson for writing the foreword and for advising and commenting on the book. My thanks also to Frank Bongiorno and Pennie Pemberton for their comments and advice. Thank you to Pat Campbell for his excellent cartoon and to Samantha Seery for designing the cover. Not least of all, I thank Helen Cooper for her patience.

Raj Jadeja
Noel Butlin Archives Centre
Research School of Social Sciences
The Australian National University

NOTE

The alphabetical directory referred to in the paper based edition has been updated and replaced in the on-line edition. The new directory can be located via the Browse menu.

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