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The aim of this paper is to identify and explain the main differences in the structures and strategies of the national union movements in Australia and Canada during the 20th century. Parallel historical narratives reveal that the differences between the two union movements ebbed and waned. They were most similar to each other in the 19th century and after the 1960s, while there was more convincing evidence of divergence in the intermediate period. Following Ross Martin, the explanation offered for these trends emphasises the relationships between unions, political parties and the state. The earlier growth of mass unionism and the political strategies adopted in Australia after their defeats in the 1890s produced more sympathetic state policies (specifically compulsory arbitration from around the turn of the century), which allowed Australian unions to prosper in ways which Canadian unions did not begin to enjoy until the 1940s. At the same time, differences in the types of state policies in the two countries subsequently affected both the structure of unions, Canadian unions being more fragmented at national level than their Australian counterparts, and the strategies they employed, Canadian unions relying more on decentralized collective bargaining compared to the more centralized arbitration approach of Australian unions.

Les auteurs tentent, à partir des résultats d'une recherche présentés dans un article récent de la revue, d'expliquer pourquoi la conciliation volontaire n'est pas plus efficace que la conciliation obligatoire. La comparaison des objectifs, des comportements et des tactiques adoptés par les parties dans chacun des régimes fait ressortir des conclusions inattendues. Parmi celles-ci, les deux plus surprenantes sont les suivantes. Tout d'abord le changement de régime légal exerce une influence sur le comportement des parties non pas durant le processus mais au moment de son enclenchement. Ensuite il a engendré certains effets contre-productifs sur l'efficacité du processus par rapport au but visé par le législateur.

The article reviews the book, "La vie dans les organisations: des indicateurs de succès," by Roch Laflamme.

A paper discusses hours of rest for Canadian shipping employees on the basis of statutory regulations, the research literature, and consultations with representatives of the shipping industry during 4 workshops held in different parts of Canada. Topics include analyses of current regulations, operational practices and research on work and rest and on time of day and rest, and recommendations for change. The analyses found that current regulations do not distinguish between sleep and recreation during rest periods and fail to take into account time of day effects in relation to quality of sleep. The proposed changes in the regulations require the use of non-rotating 24-hour duty schedules providing for minimum rest periods and maximum work periods.

The article reviews the book "Hope and Deception in Conception Bay: Merchant-Settler Relations in Newfoundland 1785-1855," by Sean T. Cadigan.

Introduces Pritchard's unpublished memoir of his speaking tour of rural Alberta on behalf of the avowedly Marxist Socialist Party of Canada during the bitterly cold winter of 1915-16.

The Report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) concerns government policy with respect to the original historical nations of this country. Those nations are important to Canada, and how Canada relates to them defines in large measure its sense of justice and its image in its own eyes and before the world. The RCAP was established by Order in Council on August 26, 1991, and it submitted its report in October 1996. --Website description. Contents: v. 1. Looking forward, looking back (695 pages) -- v.2. Restructuring the relationship (1,063 pages) -- v.3. Gathering strength (668 pages) -- v.4. Perspectives and realities (612 pages) -- v.5. Renewal: A twenty-year commitment (609 pages).

Shortly after its formation in 1949, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) became hamstrung by disagreements over cold war issues. General Secretary Oldeubroek's caution was criticized by the Americans, and Charles Millard, Canadian Director of the Steelworkers, was appointed Regional Director, a post established to counterbalance Oldenbroek's influence and to revitalise the organization. However, Millard's zeal was insufficient to compensate for his shortage of international experience, and lack of guile left him vulnerable to opponents among the movement's power brokers. At odds with both the American and British union leaderships, he resigned in 1961, a victim of the constraints placed on labour internationalism by the Cold War.

This ground-breaking collection demonstrates the research interests of a new generation of scholars. Stressing such themes as gender, race and class, the book is compelling evidence that Western Canadian history is far more complex and subtle than its depiction in the traditional literature. The contributors emphasize the way society has been made, and the extent to which it was - and is - the product of human agency rather than possessing an intangible existency beyond the interaction of groups of people. --Publisher's description. Contents: Introduction / Elizabeth Jameson -- The Seven Oaks Incident and the Construction of a Historical Tradition, 1816 to 1970 / Lyle Dick -- The Exploitation and Narration of the Captivity of Theresa Delaney and Theresa Gowanlock, 1885 / Sarah A. Carter -- Tonto's Due: Law, Culture, and Colonization in British Columbia / Tina Loo -- Clearcutting the British Columbia Coast: Work, Environment and the State, 1880-1930 / Richard A. Rajala == Workers and Intellectuals: The Theory of the New Class and Early Canadian Socialism / Mark Leier -- "A Bachelor's Paradise": Homesteaders, Hired Hands, and the Construction of Masculinity, 1880-1930 / Cecilia Danysk -- The Limitations of the Pioneering Partnership: The Alberta Campaign for Homestead Dower, 1909-1925 / Catherine Cavanaugh -- Schooling, White Supremacy, and the Formation of a Chinese Merchant Public in British Columbia / Timothy J. Stanley -- "The Past of My Place": Western Canadian Artists and the Uses of History / Jeremy Mouat -- Western Canadian History: A Selected Bibliography.

A study reports on personnel practices in unions operating in Canada. The analysis is based on survey data collected from a representative sample of 60 labor organizations. The findings indicate that for the overall sample, formal, written personnel policies are the exception and not the rule in Canadian unions. The data also reveal, however, that personnel practices are conducted on a more formal, sophisticated basis for Canadian unions with over 50,000 members. The results confirm findings of an earlier study of US unions that there is a relationship between size and sophistication of administrative practices in at least this one area. The "economy of scale" effect has important ramifications for the efficient operation of unions and for the future structure of the labor movement in North America.

Review of: Marie Guillot de l'émancipation des femmes à celle du syndicalisme by Slava Liszek.

[E]xamines thoroughly the ecological, economic, political, legal, and social influences that drive public, private, and parapublic sectors into intense and often bitter disputes over employment conditions. --From publisher's description

The article reviews the book "Forging Industrial Policy: The United States, Britain and France in The Railway Age," by Frank Dobbin.

Research deals with recent innovations in cooperative forms of collective bargaining. The wide range of highly cooperative approaches to negotiations are reviewed. A fairly comprehensive model is presented which is termed "target-specific bargaining." The research also examines some of the cross-cultural implications associated with applying the new forms of bargaining outside the North American context in 2 very different countries, Poland and South Africa.

The article reviews the book, "Playing for Dollars: Labor Relations and the Sports Business," 3rd edition, by Paul D. Staudohar.

The Employment Relationship in Australia by Tom Keenoy and Di Kelly is reviewed.

Planning is fundamental to all organizations, including unions. A study presents a research framework and discusses future directions of academic research into union planning. The researchers' findings indicate that union planning is manifested in various forms. Further, the researchers propose that to capture that phenomenon adequately, researchers must approach it from a "union context," rather than building solely upon a management, economics or business policy framework.

The article reviews the book, "Catching the Wave: Workplace Reform in Australia," by John Mathew.

Cet article présente les résultats d'une recherche empirique sur l'évaluation de l'efficacité des directions des ressources humaines (DRH) dans le secteur public québécois selon l'approche par les clients. Cette méthode mesure l'efficacité des DRH par la satisfaction de leurs clients. Le modèle proposé et testé distingue les attentes et la satisfaction des clients (contrairement aux travaux précédents) et tient compte des effets des caractéristiques des DRH sur l'évaluateur (le client). Les résultats de l'étude confirment globalement les grandes conclusions de Tsui (1987, 1990) quant à l'existence de différences significatives dans la satisfaction et les attentes des clients tout en apportant quelques modifications méthodologiques. Aussi, de façon globale, les conclusions mettent en relief l'effet de trois variables indépendantes (l'engagement des clients, la compétence des membres des DRH, la fréquence des contacts des clients avec leur DRH) sur la satisfaction des clients selon les deux axes « relations du travail » et « gestion des ressources humaines ».