Dataset ID:
au.edu.anu.assda.ddi.00977-s95
Dataset name:
Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey, 1995: File s95
Abstract
AWIRS 95 was the second comprehensive workplace survey conducted by the Department of Industrial Relations. The AWIRS 95 data release includes data from both the original AWIRS project conducted in 1989/90 (AWIRS 90) and the second project conducted in 1995 (AWIRS 95). AWIRS 95 had similar objectives to the first AWIRS, in that it planned to: * provide a comprehensive and statistically reliable data base on Australian workplace industrial relations * stimulate and inform community debate on workplace industrial relations issues * inform Government industrial relations policy development * ultimately help employers and unions improve economic performance through the development of more effective workplace industrial relations
The first AWIRS was conducted to address the lack of any systematic, comprehensive data base on workplace industrial relations in Australia. Previous studies were disparate in nature, and could not be aggregated as they covered a wide time frame and used a range of non-comparable methodologies. A main priority of AWIRS 90 was to establish the first cross-sectional picture of workplace industrial relations in Australia.
The survey sought to collect information that would describe the different patterns of workplace industrial relations in order to map out the key features of workplace industrial relations structures, processes and outcomes. This is essentially what the major publication from the first AWIRS does (see R. Callus, A. Morehead, M. Cully and J. Buchanan, Industrial Relations at Work: The Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey, AGPS, Canberra, 1991).
AWIRS 90 represented a benchmark against which changes could be judged. It was conducted in the expectation that future surveys would be able to measure changes at regular intervals of around five years. In this respect, the idea of an Australian series was modelled on the British program which has seen the conduct of three major workplace industrial relations surveys since 1980 and a fourth due in the field in the second half of 1997.
Because it is the second survey and given the continuing rapid changes in the industrial relations system, AWIRS 95 had additional aims to those described for AWIRS 90. In particular, AWIRS 95 aimed to: * assess changes that had taken place in workplace industrial relations since AWIRS 90 * assess the direction of workplace reform and evaluate the impact of a range of industrial relations and labour market policies, with particular attention to the spread and nature of workplace bargaining * inform the annual reporting requirement under Section 170RC of the Industrial Relations Reform Act 1993 with regards to the effect of enterprise bargaining on particular population groups such as women, immigrants and part-time workers.
Both AWIRS 90 and AWIRS 95 included a main survey conducted at workplaces with 20 or more employees and a small workplace survey conducted at workplaces with between 5 and 19 employees. Both main surveys were composed of four questionnaires, namely; a workplace characteristics questionnaire, a general management questionnaire, an employees relations questionnaire and a union delegate questionnaire. AWIRS 95 also included an employee survey and a panel survey.
In addition to the data files pertaining to the questionnaires and the derived variables, the AWIRS 95 data release also contains a number of data files of additional constructed data sets that researchers may find useful in conducting analysis. These constructed data sets are of three types: * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the main survey and small workplace survey in order to conduct analysis on the larger population of workplaces with five or more employees. Two such data sets have been constructed - one for AWIRS 90 and one for AWIRS 95 - and are known as the five-plus data sets. * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the AWIRS 90 and AWIRS 95 main and small workplace surveys in order to conduct analysis of change between the two surveys (that is, between 1990 and 1995). A data set of variables common to both years has been constructed for each of the four questionnaires in the main survey, for the small workplace survey and for the population of workplaces with five or more employees described in the previous point. These are known as the combined data sets. * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the AWIRS 90 main survey and AWIRS 95 panel survey for workplaces which exist in both surveys (that is, the sample of panel workplaces). A data set has been constructed for each of the four questionnaires that make up these two surveys. These are known as the matched data sets.
AWIRS 95 was the second comprehensive workplace survey conducted by the Department of Industrial Relations. The AWIRS 95 data release includes data from both the original AWIRS project conducted in 1989/90 (AWIRS 90) and the second project conducted in 1995 (AWIRS 95). AWIRS 95 had similar objectives to the first AWIRS, in that it planned to: * provide a comprehensive and statistically reliable data base on Australian workplace industrial relations * stimulate and inform community debate on workplace industrial relations issues * inform Government industrial relations policy development * ultimately help employers and unions improve economic performance through the development of more effective workplace industrial relations
The first AWIRS was conducted to address the lack of any systematic, comprehensive data base on workplace industrial relations in Australia. Previous studies were disparate in nature, and could not be aggregated as they covered a wide time frame and used a range of non-comparable methodologies. A main priority of AWIRS 90 was to establish the first cross-sectional picture of workplace industrial relations in Australia.
The survey sought to collect information that would describe the different patterns of workplace industrial relations in order to map out the key features of workplace industrial relations structures, processes and outcomes. This is essentially what the major publication from the first AWIRS does (see R. Callus, A. Morehead, M. Cully and J. Buchanan, Industrial Relations at Work: The Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey, AGPS, Canberra, 1991).
AWIRS 90 represented a benchmark against which changes could be judged. It was conducted in the expectation that future surveys would be able to measure changes at regular intervals of around five years. In this respect, the idea of an Australian series was modelled on the British program which has seen the conduct of three major workplace industrial relations surveys since 1980 and a fourth due in the field in the second half of 1997.
Because it is the second survey and given the continuing rapid changes in the industrial relations system, AWIRS 95 had additional aims to those described for AWIRS 90. In particular, AWIRS 95 aimed to: * assess changes that had taken place in workplace industrial relations since AWIRS 90 * assess the direction of workplace reform and evaluate the impact of a range of industrial relations and labour market policies, with particular attention to the spread and nature of workplace bargaining * inform the annual reporting requirement under Section 170RC of the Industrial Relations Reform Act 1993 with regards to the effect of enterprise bargaining on particular population groups such as women, immigrants and part-time workers.
Both AWIRS 90 and AWIRS 95 included a main survey conducted at workplaces with 20 or more employees and a small workplace survey conducted at workplaces with between 5 and 19 employees. Both main surveys were composed of four questionnaires, namely; a workplace characteristics questionnaire, a general management questionnaire, an employees relations questionnaire and a union delegate questionnaire. AWIRS 95 also included an employee survey and a panel survey.
In addition to the data files pertaining to the questionnaires and the derived variables, the AWIRS 95 data release also contains a number of data files of additional constructed data sets that researchers may find useful in conducting analysis. These constructed data sets are of three types: * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the main survey and small workplace survey in order to conduct analysis on the larger population of workplaces with five or more employees. Two such data sets have been constructed - one for AWIRS 90 and one for AWIRS 95 - and are known as the five-plus data sets. * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the AWIRS 90 and AWIRS 95 main and small workplace surveys in order to conduct analysis of change between the two surveys (that is, between 1990 and 1995). A data set of variables common to both years has been constructed for each of the four questionnaires in the main survey, for the small workplace survey and for the population of workplaces with five or more employees described in the previous point. These are known as the combined data sets. * Data sets that combine variables that were common to both the AWIRS 90 main survey and AWIRS 95 panel survey for workplaces which exist in both surveys (that is, the sample of panel workplaces). A data set has been constructed for each of the four questionnaires that make up these two surveys. These are known as the matched data sets.
Topic categories
Australian studies
Employment, Labour
Industrial relations, Workplace culture
Australian studies
Employment, Labour
Industrial relations, Workplace culture
Keywords:
Discrimination in employment;
Employers;
Industrial relations;
Management;
Occupational health;
Recruitment;
Strikes;
Technological change and employment;
Trade unions;
Wages;
Worker participation;
Working conditions
Principal investigators
Department of Workplace Relations and Small Business (formerly the Department of Industrial Relations)
Department of Workplace Relations and Small Business (formerly the Department of Industrial Relations)
Last data collection date:
1 January 1996
Universe
1990 and 1995 Main surveys: Workplace locations with 20 or more employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence 1990 and 1995 Small workplace surveys: Workplace locations with 5 to 19 employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
1995 Employee survey: Employees employed at workplaces with 20 or more employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
1995 Panel survey: Workplace locations that had 20 or more employees in 1990 and continued to exist and have 10 or more employees in 1995, in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
1990 and 1995 Main surveys: Workplace locations with 20 or more employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence 1990 and 1995 Small workplace surveys: Workplace locations with 5 to 19 employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
1995 Employee survey: Employees employed at workplaces with 20 or more employees in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
1995 Panel survey: Workplace locations that had 20 or more employees in 1990 and continued to exist and have 10 or more employees in 1995, in all States and Territories of Australia, excluding those in agriculture, forestry and fishing and defence
Kind of data
survey
survey
Time method
cross-sectional (one-time) study AWIRS 95 also included a panel survey. The panel survey was conducted on a sample of the workplaces that made up the AWIRS 90 main survey. The panel survey comprised the same four types of questionnaires as the main survey, although a slightly different rule applied to interviews with the union delegate. Unlike the main surveys, if the union delegate with the most members at the workplace did not have a delegate but some other union did, then the delegate interview was conducted. This was to try and increase the number of delegate interviews in the panel survey
cross-sectional (one-time) study AWIRS 95 also included a panel survey. The panel survey was conducted on a sample of the workplaces that made up the AWIRS 90 main survey. The panel survey comprised the same four types of questionnaires as the main survey, although a slightly different rule applied to interviews with the union delegate. Unlike the main surveys, if the union delegate with the most members at the workplace did not have a delegate but some other union did, then the delegate interview was conducted. This was to try and increase the number of delegate interviews in the panel survey
Sampling procedure
See the 1995 Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey (AWIRS 95): Technical Report and Data Release, Department of Workplace Relations and Small Business, Canberra, 1997.
See the 1995 Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey (AWIRS 95): Technical Report and Data Release, Department of Workplace Relations and Small Business, Canberra, 1997.
Mode of data collection
The main survey and the panel survey both consisted of four different questionnaires. Three of these were delivered by personal interview and the fourth was posted to and completed by the workplace and picked up at the time of the interviews. The employee survey was administered by a self-completion questionnaire individually addressed and provided to employees at their workplace. The small workplace survey was administered by a telephone interview
The main survey and the panel survey both consisted of four different questionnaires. Three of these were delivered by personal interview and the fourth was posted to and completed by the workplace and picked up at the time of the interviews. The employee survey was administered by a self-completion questionnaire individually addressed and provided to employees at their workplace. The small workplace survey was administered by a telephone interview
Other conditions
There is a special user undertaking.
There is a special user undertaking.
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