• Summary
• Downloads
• Explanatory Notes
• Related Information
• Past Releases

NAME OF COLLECTION
Industrial Disputes Collection

Contact
Manager
Industrial Disputes Unit
Australian Bureau of Statistics
GPO Box K881
PERTH WA 6842

Telephone: Perth 08 9360 5398
Facsimile: Perth 08 9360 5954
Email: client.services@abs.gov.au
Web site: <www.abs.gov.au>

Purpose
To collect and provide data on statistics of industrial disputes in Australia which involve stoppages of 10 working days or more at the establishments where the stoppages occurred.

Description
An industrial dispute is defined as a strike or lockout over any issue. It includes unauthorised stopwork meetings, unofficial strikes, sympathetic strikes, political or protest strikes, general strikes, work stoppages initiated by employers (e.g. lockouts) and rotating or revolving strikes. Excluded are work-to-rules, go-slows, bans and sit-ins.

Statistics are compiled mainly from data obtained from employers (both private and public sector) by mail questionnaire. Additional reports are obtained from trade unions and government authorities.

Main data detail
Data are published monthly. Statistics are cross-classified by state and territory, industry, duration of dispute, cause and method of settlement. Monthly data are also available cross-classified by eight industry groupings (including Coal mining and Other mining).

Some of the data items available for the mining industry on an annual basis are:

• total number of disputes which occurred during the period;
• total number of disputes which ended during the period;
• total number of employees involved;
• working days lost;
• working days lost per thousand employees;
• cause of dispute by number of disputes, employees involved, working days lost; and
• method of settlement by number of disputes, employees involved, working days lost.

• total number of disputes which occurred during the period;
• total number of employees involved;
• working days lost; and
• working days lost per thousand employees.

Frequency of data availability
Monthly publication. Annual data available on request.

Reference period
Calendar month and year ended 31 December.

Historical data
Industrial disputes data were collected annually from 1913 and monthly from 1959.

Products and services
Publications

• Industrial Disputes, Australia (cat. no. 6321.0)-monthly
• Industrial Disputes, Australia (cat. no. 6322.0)-annual - Discontinued 1999

• AusStats - a web based information service purchased by subscription which provides on-line access to the ABS’ standard product range (both free and charged material).
• acrobat files.
• a small amount of data and text from the monthly publication are available on the Australian Bureau of Statistics web site at <www.abs.gov.au>.
• historical data and a range of unpublished data are available on request. Data are available cross-classified by states and territory and industry. Considerable time series exist for most variables.

		Year ended
		May 1999	May 2000	May 2001	May 2002
Mining
	Coal	2,202	1,581	2,313	150
	Other	36	65	27	37
Manufacturing
	Metal product; Machinery and equipment	78	329	177	220
	Other	98	125	104	158
Construction		377	399	187	267
Transport and storage;Communication services		97	76	22	45
Education; Health and community services		59	191	25	9
Other industries(a)		9	8	8	7
All industries		62	100	44	48