Andreas Pekarek and Peter Gahan write in The Conversation (29.3.16) about how decreasing levels of union membership are changing the ways that unions operate. This includes undertaking successful grassroots community advocacy, such as seen during recent state election campaigns in Queensland and Victoria.
‘It is often said that necessity is the mother of invention. As Australian unions face increasingly urgent challenges to their legitimacy and influence, it comes as no surprise they are busy rethinking how best to represent their members and reverse the decline in membership they have experienced over the last 30 years.
‘ … While there is no silver bullet, unions will need to accelerate the pace of innovation if they are to regain their influence in a rapidly changing world of work.’