Media Relase 2nd December 2009

Former Prime Minister Bob Hawke today helped the Shop Assistants’ Union celebrate its centenary year, hard on the heels of one of its greatest victories – defeating the Howard Government’s insidious WorkChoices legislation.

Australia’s largest and most influential union (more than 215,000 members nationally) provided a number of firsts for the union movement over the past 100 years and now a 160 page illustrated book, produced by the Victorian branch, details some of those achievements.

The Shop Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association (SDA) was the first union:

• To get equal pay for females (shop assistants) during World War II, 
• To demand and get superannuation as a mandatory award condition 
• To appoint a women’s officer to promote equality for female workers

Victorian Branch Secretary Michael Donovan said opposition by the SDA and its members to WorkChoices was seen by astute political analysts as a critical factor in the Howard Government election loss.

“We provided the most funds of any union for the ACTU campaign against WorkChoices, and we were relentless in our efforts to get the message to our members that Howard’s IR legislation had to go,” Mr Donovan said.

“The reason for such a sustained effort was because WorkChoices particularly threatened lower income workers – especially female and young workers – and that’s a large proportion of our members.”

Mr Donovan said Victorians should be proud of what unions such as the SDA have achieved for workers over the last century.

“A hundred years ago shop assistants were working more than 65 hours across a six-day week. There was no annual leave, long service or sick leave, penalty rates, tea breaks, public holidays, or unfair dismissal laws. All the things we regard as fair and reasonable today had to be won by the SDA.”

Mr Donovan said the book covers the issues that shaped the union over a century (such as the eternal struggle over trading hours) and the characters that championed the many causes for its members.

“Jim Maher was 50 years with the SDA and is most responsible for the strength the union enjoys today, and Joe de Bruyn has been 36 years with the SDA and is regarded as one of the most influential trade unionists today. Both are featured in the book.

“It is fitting that Bob Hawke officially launches the book because it was the former Prime Minister that invited the SDA to come back to the Labor fold in 1985. Since that reaffiliation with the Labor Party the SDA has, both in Victoria and nationally, grown in influence to be a very strong voice for our members both in the trade union movement and within Governments.”

Please download our order form to get your copy of the book.