Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1911

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COMMONWEALTH CONCILIATION AND ARBITRATION.

No. 6 of 1911.

An Act to amend the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1910.

[Assented to 23rd November, 1911.]

BE it enacted by the King’s Most Excellent Majesty, the Senate, and the House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Australia, as follows:—

Short title and citation.

1.—(1.) This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1911.

(2.) The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1910 is in this Act referred to as the Principal Act.

(3.) The Principal Act, as amended by this Act, may be cited as the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1911.

Definition of “Industrial dispute.”

2. Section four of the Principal Act is amended by omitting, from the definition of “Industrial dispute”, the words, “arising between an employer or an organization of employers on the one part and an organization of employees on the other part”.

Definition of “Industry.”

3. Section four of the Principal Act is amended by omitting therefrom the definition of “Industry”, and inserting in its stead the following definition:—

“‘Industry’ includes—

(a) any business, trade, manufacture, undertaking, or calling of employers, on land or water;

(b) any calling, service, employment, handicraft, or industrial occupation or avocation of employees, on land or water; and

Application to organizations registered before commencement of this Act.

4. The registration, as an organization under the Principal Act, of any association purporting to be registered before the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to be as valid to all intents and purposes, and to have constituted the association an organization as effectually as if this Act had been in force at the date of the registration.

Lock-outs or strikes after industrial agreement.

5. Section seven of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting the words “in any industry”; and

(b) by omitting the words “in that industry”.

Prejudicing employees for membership of organization.

6. Section nine of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting, after the words “injure him in his employment”, the words “or alter his position to his prejudice”;

(b) by omitting the words “Twenty pounds” and inserting in their stead the words “Fifty pounds”; and

Penalty for ceasing work on account of employer’s membership of organization.

7. Section ten of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the words “Ten pounds” and inserting in their stead the words “Twenty-five pounds”.

Compulsory conference.

8. Section sixteen a of the Principal Act is amended by inserting after sub-section (1.) the following sub-section:—

“(1a.) ‘Any person’ in the last preceding sub-section includes not only persons engaged in or connected with an industrial dispute, but also any person engaged in or connected with any dispute relating to industrial matters (whether extending beyond the limits of a State or not), and related in any way to an industrial dispute; and also includes any person, whether connected with an industrial dispute or not, whose presence at the conference the President thinks is likely to conduce to the prevention or settlement of an industrial dispute.”

Power to award costs.

9. After section seventeen of the Principal Act the following section is inserted:—

“17a. The Court or President may order any party to any application to pay to any other party such costs and expenses, including expenses of witnesses, as it or he thinks fit, but so that no costs shall be allowed for the services of any counsel, solicitor, or agent.”

Cognizance of disputes.

10. Section nineteen of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting the words “in the prescribed manner; and”;

and

(b) by adding at the end thereof the words “and

“(d) All industrial disputes as to which the President has held a conference under section sixteen a of this Act, and as to which no agreement has been reached, and which the President has thereupon referred to the Court.”

Certificate of Registrar.

11. Section twenty-one of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the words “that any dispute relating to industrial matters is” and inserting in their stead the words “that a specified industrial dispute exists and is”.

Award in default of agreement.

12. Section twenty-four of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-section (l.), after the words “agreement between the parties”, the words “as to the whole or any part of the dispute”, and

(b) by omitting the whole of sub-section (2.), and inserting in its stead the following sub-section:—

“(2.) If no agreement between the parties as to the whole of the dispute is arrived at, the Court shall, by an award, determine the dispute, or (if an agreement has been arrived at as to a part of the dispute) so much of the dispute as is not settled by the agreement.”

Exercise of powers under the Act.

13. Section twenty-five of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the words “in any proceeding under this Act” and inserting in their stead the words “in exercising any duties or powers under or by virtue of this Act”.

Awards and orders not to be challenged.

14. Section thirty-one of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting, after the word “award”, the words “or order”, and

(b) by inserting, after the words “called in question”, the words “or be subject to prohibition or mandamus”.

Power to refrain from hearing matter or part of matter.

15. Paragraph (h) of section thirty-eight of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting, after the word “matter”, the words “or part of a matter”;

(b) by inserting, after the words “determining the dispute”, the words “or part of the dispute”;

(d) by omitting, after the words “trivial, or”, the words “that the dispute”.

Relief not limited to demands made in course of dispute.

16. Section thirty-eight b of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting, after the words “industrial dispute”, the words “or to the demands made by the parties in the course of the dispute”; and

(b) by adding at the end of the section the words “or of preventing further industrial disputes”.

Board of Reference.

17. Section forty a of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting, after the word “appoint,” the words “or give power to appoint,”;

(b) by inserting, after the word “fixing,” the word “determining,”; and

Amendment of s. 55 of Principal Act.

18. Section fifty-five of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by inserting in sub-section (1.) after the words “following associations” the words “or persons”;

(b) by inserting in paragraph (a) of sub-section (1.) after the word “aggregate” the words “or any employer who has”.

Power of organization to change its name.

19. The Principal Act is amended by inserting, after section fifty-eight, the following section:—

“58a. An organization may, in the prescribed manner, and on compliance with the prescribed conditions, change its name, and the Registrar shall thereupon record the change of name in the register and upon the certificate of registration.”

Application for cancellation of registration.

20. Section sixty of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) by omitting the words “appears to the Registrar”, and inserting in their stead the words “appears to the Court, on the application of any organization or person interested or of the Registrar”;

(b) by omitting all words, from and including the words “he shall make application”, to the end of sub-section (1.), and inserting in their stead the words “the Court shall order the registration of the organization to be cancelled, and thereupon it shall be cancelled accordingly”; and

Proclaimed organizations.

21. Section sixty-two of the Principal Act is amended by inserting, after the word “association”, where it first occurs, the words “whether registrable under this Act or not”.

Industrial agreements.

22. Section seventy-three of the Principal Act is amended by inserting, after the words “industrial disputes”, the words “existing or future”.

Term of industrial agreement.

23. Section seventy-five of the Principal Act is amended by omitting the words “three years” and inserting in their stead the words “five years”.

Overview

The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1911 was enacted to amend the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1910 and address various issues related to industrial disputes and the arbitration process in Australia. The Act was passed by the Australian Parliament with the assent of the King. Its primary objective was to refine the legal framework for handling industrial disputes by broadening the scope of industrial disputes to include those beyond traditional employer-employee relationships, and by enhancing the powers and scope of the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission. This included adjustments to the definitions of "industrial dispute" and "industry," expanding the range of penalties for breaches of the Act, and increasing the duration of industrial agreements to five years. The Act also provided the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission with additional powers to manage disputes more effectively, including the ability to award costs and to refrain from hearing certain parts of a dispute.

Scope and Application

The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1911 amends the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1910 to introduce changes that affect the scope and operation of industrial relations processes in Australia. The Act applies to all employers and employees engaged in any business, trade, manufacture, undertaking, or calling, as well as any calling, service, employment, handicraft, or industrial occupation or avocation, on land or water. This broad definition ensures that the Act's provisions encompass a wide range of industries and occupations across the Commonwealth. The amendments also extend to organizations that were registered under the Principal Act before the commencement of this Act, deeming such registrations as valid. The Act allows for compulsory conferences to include not only those engaged in an industrial dispute but also any person whose presence is deemed likely to assist in the prevention or settlement of such disputes, thereby expanding the scope of who can participate in conciliation and arbitration processes. Additionally, the Act increases the penalties for certain offences, such as prejudicing employees for membership of an organization, and provides the Court or President with the authority to award costs in applications, while explicitly disallowing costs for the services of counsel, solicitor, or agent.

Key Provisions

The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1911 (C1911A00006) amends the Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1904–1910, providing several key updates and clarifications. The Act modifies the definition of "Industrial dispute" (Section 2), removing the restriction that disputes must arise between an employer or organization of employers and an organization of employees. It also redefines "Industry" (Section 3) to include any business, trade, manufacture, undertaking, or calling of employers, as well as any calling, service, employment, handicraft, or industrial occupation of employees. The Act ensures that any organization registered under the Principal Act before the commencement of this Act remains valid (Section 4). It prohibits lock-outs or strikes after an industrial agreement has been made (Section 5) and amends penalties for prejudicing employees for membership of an organization (Section 6), as well as for ceasing work due to an employer's membership in an organization (Section 7). The compulsory conference provisions are expanded to include a broader range of participants (Section 8), and the Court or President is granted the power to award costs (Section 9). The Act also provides for cognizance of disputes (Section 10), the issuance of certificates by the Registrar (Section 11), and the making of awards in the default of an agreement (Section 12). Furthermore, it modifies the exercise of powers under the Act (Section 13), protects awards and orders from being challenged (Section 14), and allows for refraining from hearing a matter or part of a matter (Section 15). The Act also clarifies that relief is not limited to demands made in the course of the dispute (Section 16) and modifies the Board of Reference provisions (Section 17). It allows organizations to change their names under prescribed conditions (Section 19) and amends the process for the cancellation of registration (Section 20). Additionally, it updates the term of industrial agreements from three to five years (Section 23). The Act imposes various obligations and requirements on the parties and entities it governs. It mandates the inclusion of a broader range of participants in compulsory conferences and the registration of organizations before engaging in certain activities. It also requires adherence to the terms of any industrial agreements and compliance with the updated definitions and provisions. Organizations must comply with the conditions for changing their names and be aware of the implications of their registration status. The Act further requires the Registrar to issue certificates of specified industrial disputes and mandates the Court or President to award costs in appropriate cases. The Act outlines several offences and penalties for breaches of its provisions. For instance, prejudicing employees for membership of an organization carries a penalty of Fifty Pounds (Section 6), while ceasing work on account of an employer’s membership of an organization carries a penalty of Twenty-five Pounds (Section 7). Failure to comply with the Act's requirements or engage in prohibited activities may result in legal consequences, including the cancellation of registration (Section 20) and other penalties as deemed appropriate by the Court or President.

Area of Law: Employment & Labour Law
Instrument: Act
Concepts: Definitions & Interpretation; Repeal & Amendment; Offence Provisions; Compulsory conference; Power to award costs; Relief not limited to demands made in course of dispute

Interactions

Sourced from the Federal Register of Legislation at 26 August 2026. For the latest information on Australian Government law please go to https://www.legislation.gov.au.

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